After a day’s rest, Taixu Hall finally settled down. Apart from those still in seclusion after suffering from qi deviation, the other leaders had regained their composure and gathered in the main hall again to discuss what to do next. The Demon Realm had already made a move and taken many important hostages, they needed to come up with a strategy.
Gu Baiqing, who had only pretended to be ill, naturally wouldn’t attend. He stayed in his small courtyard, meditating, waiting for Fu Zhiyi’s instructions.
At the moment, only Ao Hang and Three Bean were by his side, there was no sign of Mo Xuanli.
After that awkward conversation yesterday, Mo Xuanli hadn’t said much more, and Gu Baiqing didn’t dare to bring it up either. Soon, new matters had drawn everyone’s attention away.
News came in from Nan Zhi, who had gone off alone to track Yun Yue.
After Chu Fei purged his demonic energy and heard his disciple’s report, he only nodded, indicating he understood. Fu Zhiyi, however, looked like he had a headache, his face all twisted with exasperation. Among the younger generation, aside from Mo Xuanli, Nan Zhi was the strongest, and now both were giving him trouble.
Fu Zhiyi ordered Chu Fei to use their master-disciple bond to summon her back. Chu Fei refused flatly, saying they’d be wasting time waiting for a rescue meeting anyway. He believed his disciple acted swiftly and decisively, nothing wrong with that.
Fu Zhiyi demanded, “What if Nan Zhi dives straight into danger and something happens to her?”
Chu Fei just said, “Then she was overestimating herself. I don’t have such a foolish disciple.” That left Fu Zhiyi clutching his chest, wheezing with frustration.
In short, due to this “hands-off” approach from her master, Zixiao Sect had no choice but to let Nan Zhi act on her own. In any case, the cultivation world would soon mobilize, and she wouldn’t end up isolated.
Although Mo Xuanli worried about her too, he trusted that Senior Sister Nan Zhi wouldn’t act recklessly. So, for now, he focused on one thing, cultivating and improving his strength.
During the day, he sparred at the martial arena with Li Xiuran and Jingzhan; at night, he returned to meditate next door.
The only thing he never failed to do was prepare three meals a day for Gu Baiqing.
Gu Baiqing noticed that Mo Xuanli wasn’t as clingy as before. He didn’t know whether it was because of the awkwardness from that conversation, or because the boy had learned to maintain proper distance between master and disciple.
Sitting in the courtyard, Gu Baiqing watched Ao Hang’s dragon tail teasing Three Bean playfully across the stone table. A gentle breeze blew, scattering a few fallen leaves and somehow, the scene felt a little desolate.
“Master, are you feeling bored?” Three Bean suddenly asked, lying atop Ao Hang’s head and tilting his catlike face toward Gu Baiqing.
Gu Baiqing ignored the faint unease in his chest. “Not really. Why?”
Three Bean thought for a moment. “Then maybe it’s me who’s bored. It just feels… ever since Xuanli hasn’t been around, things are too quiet.”
Before Gu Baiqing could respond, Ao Hang spoke first, displeased. “What? I’m not enough company for you?”
Three Bean flicked his tail. “It’s not the same.”
“Of course it’s not the same,” Ao Hang said with a resentful glance at Gu Baiqing. “If Three Bean could take human form, we could do many more interesting things together.”
Three Bean immediately swiped at him, but his paw only thudded harmlessly against his dragon scales.
Gu Baiqing pretended not to hear Ao Hang’s grumbling, sipping his tea and looking at the sky. But Ao Hang wasn’t done. “Hey, give me a bit of spiritual energy.”
Because of that misunderstanding incident last time, Gu Baiqing had used “recharging spiritual energy” as an excuse and unfortunately, the dragon had overheard. Now, faced with his demand, Gu Baiqing felt a headache coming on.
“I’ll faint if I use too much,” he said helplessly. “And what I have left isn’t much. If I run out when it really matters, that’ll be trouble.” Of course, he couldn’t let the dragon know about the point system or all his points would be gone for sure.
Ao Hang squinted slyly. “Then just get close to Mo Xuanli again to make up the loss.”
Gu Baiqing looked awkwardly toward Three Bean.
Three Bean immediately came to his defense. “Don’t make things hard for Master! And… and I’m still little! You’re not allowed to say bad things!”
Having been thoroughly tamed by his “little wife,” Ao Hang could only grumble a couple of times in protest.
Then, unable to resist stirring trouble, he said, “Three Bean, I’m only suggesting this for your master’s own good. Don’t you want him to recover faster? I mean, if contact restores spiritual power…”
He turned a wicked grin toward Gu Baiqing. “Why don’t you just dual cultivate with Mo Xuanli once? Maybe you’d recover completely in one go.”
Gu Baiqing knew that nothing good ever came out of Ao Hang’s mouth, but he still choked in shock, coughing violently. “That’s not how it works!”
Ao Hang smirked. “How do you know if you haven’t tried? It’s not like you’d lose anything. If you can’t take being the bottom, he still likes you anyway, just get on top of him. He probably wouldn’t mind. If it fails, you’ll at least regain some spiritual power for later use. If it succeeds, well, everyone wins.”
The more he talked, the more animated he became, clearly enjoying his own outrageous proposal.
Three Bean was completely dumbfounded.
Gu Baiqing, too, was so shocked that it took him half a day to finally say, “He doesn’t like me… he’s just young and confused, mistaking reliance for affection.”
“What’s the difference?” Ao Hang sneered. “Anyway, if you told him to strip and lie down, he definitely wouldn’t refuse. And after you really did it, maybe he’d figure out for himself whether it’s affection or just misplaced dependence.”
Gu Baiqing felt his temples throb. Talking to Ao Hang was enough to choke a man to death.
Before he could even retort, Three Bean suddenly exclaimed in delight, “Xuanli, you’re back so early!”
Gu Baiqing’s face instantly burned, had Mo Xuanli heard all that nonsense just now?
He stiffly turned his head toward the small courtyard’s entrance and saw Mo Xuanli standing there frozen in place. When Mo Xuanli noticed Gu Baiqing looking his way, his gaze shifted awkwardly; clearly, he had heard.
Gu Baiqing wanted nothing more than to cover his face, but outwardly he forced himself to stay calm. After all, those indecent words weren’t his; he had no reason to feel guilty. But as Mo Xuanli stepped into the courtyard, Gu Baiqing couldn’t help holding his breath, his eyes lowering to the other’s feet.
“Master, Taixu Hall has reached a decision. They’re summoning everyone now,” Mo Xuanli said.
That was faster than Gu Baiqing had expected. It had only been three days, clearly, with Fu Zhiyi and Baili Jingcheng in charge, the efficiency had improved considerably.
Gu Baiqing followed Mo Xuanli toward the main hall. At the empty chain bridge between floating isles, Mo Xuanli used his sword to carry him across, but for the rest of the way they walked to avoid anyone suspecting his true condition.
Suddenly, walking beside him, Mo Xuanli spoke: “Master, your spiritual power…”
Gu Baiqing froze, inwardly groaning, why bring up that topic? He looked at Mo Xuanli helplessly and heard the young man persist, “Do you need to replenish it?”
Gu Baiqing flinched as if pricked. “Your contracted beast spouts nonsense, and now you’re imagining things too? What he said is utter drivel. I know my own situation.”
A flicker passed through Mo Xuanli’s deep eyes, his master’s resistance was obvious. Whether the method might work or not, Gu Baiqing clearly had no wish to try.
“Master, what are you thinking?” Mo Xuanli said naturally. “I wasn’t talking about dual cultivation. You’ve already made yourself clear before, I remember. You’ve thought about it but can’t do it. Even if I offered to help you recover your power, you wouldn’t agree. So I didn’t take Ao Hang’s words seriously. Of course… if Master truly needed to, I would also—”
“Stop! Don’t, don’t offer that so casually,” Gu Baiqing cut him off, mortified. “That’s not how I taught you. Dual cultivation is something that should only happen between people who truly love each other.”
“Even if it concerns one’s life?” Mo Xuanli asked quietly.
Gu Baiqing was stunned. For some reason, the question reminded him of that d*mned self-insert fanfic that had led him astray before, why did this situation feel so familiar?
Rubbing his temple, he said, “Don’t ask such hypothetical questions. In any case, I know that method won’t work. Don’t overthink it. Don’t get yourself stuck in another dead end.”
Mo Xuanli, of course, knew what his master meant by that; if something beyond a teacher–disciple relationship really happened, then in Gu Baiqing’s eyes, he’d never again be able to tell whether his feelings were real or merely confusion.
Composing himself, Mo Xuanli said slowly, “Actually, I was asking because I’m worried you’ll run out of spiritual power later. I was thinking that perhaps, through simple contact, I could give you a little more in advance, just in case.”
Gu Baiqing thought, Is that really necessary?
But before he could say so, Mo Xuanli’s next words froze him in place.
“After all, it’s possible that very soon, I’ll be acting separately from Master.”
Gu Baiqing stopped walking, staring at him in surprise. “What do you mean? What are you planning?”
“I think the meeting’s decision will likely involve splitting us into groups,” Mo Xuanli said seriously. “I vaguely heard Clan Chief Ji mention it. Since we’re preparing to fight the demon realm, the forces of the cultivation world will probably be reorganized and distributed. Master, as a Tribulation Stage cultivator, will surely be assigned to stay behind and oversee things, while us junior disciples will be sent out on missions.”
Even before hearing the official results, he had already guessed much of it.
“I’m worried that, if I’m not by your side, your spiritual power might run low,” Mo Xuanli added gently. “So I thought I could give you more now.”
Gu Baiqing’s expression was unreadable. What Mo Xuanli said made sense, in truth, it had always been strange for a master to tag along with his disciple during trials. And now that a war between immortals and demons was looming, it was unlikely they would continue working together.
But according to the system’s constraints, he couldn’t leave Mo Xuanli’s side. How would he complete his missions otherwise?
After a moment’s thought, Gu Baiqing said, “You don’t need to worry about that. I’ll try to work it out so we can continue acting together.”
Mo Xuanli, however, lifted his eyes and looked straight at him. “I’m not worried. It’s just… Master, I want to act alone.”
Gu Baiqing blinked, momentarily not understanding. He frowned. “You mean you don’t want me to come with you? Whatever the task is, aren’t you still looking for the fragments of the God-Slaying Sword? And the demon clan seems to be targeting you, if I don’t go with you…”
“Master, I may have other companions joining me,” Mo Xuanli said plainly. “You don’t need to worry.”
That rejection was thorough. Gu Baiqing stood frozen for a while before realizing, Mo Xuanli truly meant to keep his distance.
As he was still processing that, he heard Mo Xuanli give a faint, bitter smile. “Didn’t Master say you wanted me to sort out my feelings? How can I, if we’re always together? When you’re around, everything you do feels like care, and I… I don’t want to keep misunderstanding your intentions.”
Gu Baiqing’s breath hitched slightly as he looked at Mo Xuanli, his expression full of hesitation and unease.
Mo Xuanli also looked steadily at him. For a while, neither spoke. Only the breeze sweeping across the floating island between them proved that time was still moving.
When Gu Baiqing felt he could hardly breathe under the weight of the emotions in Mo Xuanli’s eyes, he finally looked away and said quietly, with a dull heaviness in his chest, “Since you’ve decided, then so be it.”
Yes, Mo Xuanli’s decision wasn’t wrong. They should separate. They couldn’t always stay together.
As for the possible missions ahead, he would think of another way.
Gu Baiqing gave no further response and simply lifted his foot toward the main hall. Behind him, Mo Xuanli followed a couple of steps and quickly said, “Master, your spiritual energy replenishment—”
“I don’t need it,” Gu Baiqing interrupted impatiently.
So annoying! It wasn’t like he absolutely had to use spirit treasures, he still had his system points!
Mo Xuanli, however, followed obediently behind him, eyes fixed firmly on Gu Baiqing’s back.
Of course, those words earlier were lies. His feelings didn’t need sorting out, he just had other reasons that forced him to act this way.
Inside the main hall, many people had already gathered, most of them cultivators above the Golden Core stage. Naturally, all had undergone strict verification to ensure absolute safety. Everyone’s expressions were grave as they waited for instructions.
The demon realm was preparing to collect the fragments of the God-Slaying Sword, had set up a Demon-Summoning Array, was attempting to unseal the Demon Seal, and had even captured cultivators as live sacrifices. All these acts were declarations of war. Yet the cultivation world was currently constrained, unable to strike directly, so only roundabout countermeasures could be taken.
Thus, three plans were decided upon:
First, to send people to the borders to openly provoke and challenge the demons, demanding the release of captives and drawing their attention away.
Second, to secretly infiltrate the demon realm in disguise, gather intelligence, locate the hostages, and assess whether a rescue could be attempted.
Third, to dispatch small, covert teams to search for the fragments of the God-Slaying Sword, in hopes of finding more of them before the demons did thereby ruining their plans. As long as the demons hadn’t gathered all the fragments, the hostages’ lives were temporarily safe, which was why everyone could discuss things calmly for now.
The first task was easy to arrange, many were eager to volunteer. They were numerous and battle-hungry. Chu Fei was the first to step forward, and both Fu Zhiyi and Jingcheng agreed to let him lead the group.
The second task was much trickier. Many volunteered, but few were suitable. The infiltrators couldn’t be famous cultivators, no matter how clever the disguise, walking through demon territory while well-known would be too risky. For that reason, Mo Xuanli was immediately ruled out, he had killed several demons and allied with the merfolk, far too notorious.
Candidates also needed to be brave yet cautious, adaptable, and above all, mentally strong. Anyone whose mind wasn’t stable enough could fall into temptation and be corrupted once inside the demon realm turning into the very thing they sought to oppose. So, from the volunteers, only a few would be carefully selected. It was a highly dangerous mission. Still, Jingzhan, Si Chun, and He Zixuan all signed up. Whether they would pass the screening remained to be seen.
As for the third mission, there was no need to choose. It could only be Li Xiuran.
No one else could recognize the fragments of the God-Slaying Sword. To most people, they just looked like bits of broken stone. Only Li Xiuran, whose sword intent resonated with the fragments, could sense them.
Of course, no one knew that Mo Xuanli already possessed three fragments himself and could now also sense the others.
So when someone asked Li Xiuran who he wanted to bring along, he immediately chose Mo Xuanli.
For such a mission, the fewer people, the better. Too many would draw attention; a small team moved quietly.
Conveniently, Li Xiuran had just broken through two days earlier, now both he and Mo Xuanli were at mid-Nascent Soul stage. Their combined power was nothing to scoff at; even a Tribulation Stage cultivator might suffer in their hands. Thus, everyone was reassured that they could handle this crucial mission together.
The Hidden Gods Clan would also provide them with disguises to prevent demon tracking.
Besides these, there were several smaller tasks. For instance, following up on information from captured spies about possible spirit-gathering arrays, which required investigation.
As for the sect masters and the highest-level cultivators, they naturally had to stay behind to anchor the defenses. The demons hadn’t yet played their trump cards so the cultivators couldn’t either.
To Fu Zhiyi, however, one thing was certain: there was no way he would let Gu Baiqing go out. Considering his condition, leaving would only raise the danger level. It was better for him to stay quietly, whether at Zixiao Sect or Taixu Hall, he could choose.
So, when the meeting ended and Gu Baiqing went to see him, Fu Zhiyi cut him off before he could even speak. “If you’re thinking of following your disciple, forget it!”
Gu Baiqing was speechless. “I haven’t even said anything yet!”
“Don’t tell me you’re not here because of Mo Xuanli? He’s not a child! Can’t he survive without you?” Fu Zhiyi’s head throbbed just thinking about this master-disciple pair and especially about Mo Xuanli’s situation. He wanted Gu Baiqing to stay precisely so they’d keep their distance.
Whether it was a matter of feelings or the more unspeakable danger that might arise.
But after he finished speaking, Fu Zhiyi noticed Gu Baiqing pause for a moment, then say awkwardly, “He can manage on his own. He wants to act independently. I didn’t come here to insist on following him. I just wanted to ask… can I skip the duty of staying behind to anchor the defenses? I’d like to move freely.”
Fu Zhiyi blinked in surprise, instantly understanding, Mo Xuanli must have truly taken his master’s words to heart and made this decision for Gu Baiqing’s sake.
But as for this hopeless junior brother of his, free action? He had no doubt Gu Baiqing just wanted to secretly trail after his disciple again.
