Chapter 46: This World Is a Bit Mad

Qin Yue and Hu Jiuyan waited in the living room, occasionally glimpsing young girls passing the doorway, pretending to glance inside out of idle curiosity.

Eventually, Hu Jiuyan grew annoyed and simply went over to shoo them away. “Don’t you all have anything better to do?” With a loud bang, she shut the door, laughter ringing outside as a group of girls scampered off, their laughter crisp and clear.

“They’re all audacious little minxes, masters of deception. You’d best keep your distance from them in the future.”

“Oh, alright.”

Just then, the door was pushed open again. Hu Jiuyan raised her brows, then quickly rose with a respectful salute when she saw who it was. “Greetings, Sect Leader, Holy Maiden.”

The coldly beautiful Feng Qianning entered, accompanied by a woman in a pale blue gown, her face veiled.

The Sect Leader was a woman?

Qin Yue also rose and cupped his hands, his attention drawn to the woman in blue—a shock running through him.

Lady Xingyao?

But in the next instant, he noticed subtle differences. Lady Xingyao appeared more voluptuous, while the blue-gowned woman was taller. Her veil was more translucent too, revealing the vague outline of an exquisitely beautiful face.

Yet when she spoke, Qin Yue was thrown into confusion—the gentle, melodious voice was just like Lady Xingyao’s!

“No need for formality. Please, be seated.”

Qin Yue, full of suspicion, sat down and looked at Feng Qianning. “Are you feeling better, Holy Maiden?”

“Thank you for your concern. Much better now,” Feng Qianning replied.

At this, Hu Jiuyan said, “Sect Leader, Holy Maiden, I’ll take my leave for now.”

“There’s no need. Stay,” the Sect Leader’s voice was gentle. “You’ve performed very well recently. I intend to promote you to Executive Elder of the sect, overseeing all worldly affairs.”

A promotion? Qin Yue was somewhat surprised.

His swordswoman companion, brimming with excitement, bowed deeply. “Thank you for your trust, Sect Leader. I, Jiuyan, will not fail your expectations!”

It was a stroke of great fortune. To become an Elder raised her status a notch—no longer a junior disciple, she needn’t call Qin Yue ‘Martial Uncle’ anymore.

Feng Qianning pressed her lips together and said calmly, “Congratulations, Elder Hu Jiuyan.”

Hu Jiuyan’s smile was radiant. “Thank you, Holy Maiden!”

The woman in blue then turned to Qin Yue. “Tianluo Sect is known as a demonic sect in the eyes of the world. Are you certain you wish to join?”

“I am certain,” he replied.

She nodded. “Ningning—the Holy Maiden—has already told you, I will accept you as a disciple in our master’s stead. Our master is currently in closed retreat. If you join the sect, you will be guided by myself, your other senior brothers and sisters, including the Holy Maiden.”

Only now did Qin Yue realize that the Sect Leader and Feng Qianning, the Holy Maiden, were actually fellow disciples.

“Thank you for your guidance, Sect Leader!” He offered his thanks sincerely, his heart growing a bit excited.

All his life, he’d been a lone cultivator. Though his master had offered some guidance early on, the old madman had never mastered advanced cultivation methods, knowing only killing techniques, and thus couldn’t help much in the arts of cultivation.

Fortunately, he could visualize various techniques in his spiritual world, learning and comprehending them repeatedly as if self-studying with the best “study materials” available.

But to smoothly advance from the Art stage to the Way, true guidance was essential. Sometimes, a single word from a master could save months of solitary pondering.

“We’re all family now, there’s no need for such formality. You may call me Senior Sister in private. My name is Mu Xingruo.”

Mu Xingruo smiled. “I’ve already had the founder’s portrait and altar prepared. Today is an auspicious day.”

If he hadn’t known Tianluo Sect’s reputation, Qin Yue would have thought he was joining a respected and upright sect. Even the founder’s portrait depicted an immortal with the bearing of a sage.

Ablutions, changing into ritual robes, offering incense, prostrating—after completing the ceremonies, the youth from the Frozen Abyss officially joined Tianluo Sect. He now belonged, and had a powerful backing.

Yet this backing… seemed rather gentle, he mused privately.

He asked Hu Jiuyan, who now smiled foolishly from time to time since her promotion, “Is everyone in our sect a woman except me? The Sect Leader said I had senior brothers, but I haven’t seen a single one.”

Hu Jiuyan shot him a look. “Of course there are. This is just where the Holy Maiden is recuperating, not the sect’s main gate. Did you really think Tianluo Sect only had a handful of members?”

Well, she did know him well after all. Qin Yue had honestly been getting that impression.

“Don’t worry, you’ll meet your seniors soon enough!” Hu Jiuyan said with a laugh.

At the banquet that evening, Qin Yue finally saw men.

One was a gaunt middle-aged man with a shadowy gaze; another, a chubby, red-faced old man whose eyes all but disappeared when he smiled; and a third, a man in his early thirties who looked at him oddly, as if Qin Yue had stolen his sweetheart.

Aside from the Sect Leader Mu Xingruo, the Holy Maiden Feng Qianning, and the newly promoted Elder Hu Jiuyan, there were in total seven people at the table, including Qin Yue.

The food was lavish—everything from sky, land, and water, even the vegetables were spiritual ingredients.

Mu Xingruo introduced Qin Yue to the others first.

—The heir to Green Bamboo Garden, from a mysterious family, a prodigy who had, upon debuting, become a guest of honor at Monster Beast Valley and was coveted by all the great orthodox sects!

“Now, he’s one of us!”

Even through her veil, Mu Xingruo’s delight was palpable.

She didn’t mention Qin Yue’s origins from the Frozen Abyss, not even to Hu Jiuyan, giving Qin Yue the impression that the Sect Leader herself might not know.

Then she introduced the unfamiliar faces, starting with the grim middle-aged man.

“This is our Junior Uncle, Chi Mingxu. When you were at the Yandang Mountain crypt, he was the one who held off Zhang Taiyue outside.”

Qin Yue was taken aback and quickly rose in salute. “Greetings, Uncle Chi, thank you for your help back then!”

Looking back, if someone hadn’t stalled Zhang Taiyue, the not-fully-recovered serpent spirit wouldn’t have been able to hold the line, and he wouldn’t have had the chance to refine and retrieve the little cauldron.

Chi Mingxu’s expression changed little. “No need to thank me. The Sect Leader and Holy Maiden asked, so I went. Now that you are one of us, we must support one another. Tianluo’s rules are few, but the most important is never to raise your hand against your own—unless the Sect Leader orders an internal purge.”

He handed over a storage pouch. “The Holy Maiden told me you tricked the Zhao Yang Sect and are not lacking in money, but this is a token from me. Should you need anything in cultivation, just ask.”

He then gave Qin Yue a messaging stone.

The higher-level messaging stones could register multiple soul imprints for group contact, but most preferred the one-to-one stones.

This senior uncle seemed aloof, not easy to approach, but was generous in his gifts. Qin Yue gratefully accepted.

A quick scan with his spiritual sense revealed thousands of spirit stones and several high-grade spiritual herbs.

Mu Xingruo then introduced the red-faced old man. “This is our Senior Brother…”

Uncle is middle-aged, Senior Brother is an old man?

“I’m Chen Qianzhang, just an old has-been,” the Senior Brother introduced himself with a laugh. “Only got here early, that’s all.”

He handed over another pouch. “I’m not as rich as Uncle, just a few spirit stones, some herbs, and a handful of little trinkets for self-defense. I’ve written out instructions for each—easy to understand.”

Qin Yue was moved. This Senior Brother must have prepared these gifts in advance after learning he would join the sect, making him feel he’d joined a warm family.

Hu Jiuyan chimed in, “Senior Uncle Chen…”

Chen Qianzhang waved her off. “Didn’t the Sect Leader just promote you to Elder? You’re no longer a junior disciple—call me Senior Brother.”

Hu Jiuyan blushed, unused to the change, and called him Senior Brother. She then explained to Qin Yue, “Senior Brother Chen is the one I asked to help deal with those demonic cultivators.”

Chen Qianzhang chuckled. “Our Tianluo Sect doesn’t commit heinous acts, but those scoundrels still try to smear us. I won’t stand for it. Little Brother, Junior Sister, rest assured, I’ll be staying up north for quite some time. I don’t practice dark arts, but I know them well—and with me here, those vermin won’t harm the people of the north!”

Qin Yue was at a loss for words.

The so-called righteous sects secretly harbored evil cultivators and preyed upon innocents, yet the demonic sect members vowed to protect the people with integrity.

Who, truly, were the demons?

This world was indeed a bit mad.

The last, the man in his thirties, was introduced by Feng Qianning.

“Wei Jie was the most recent disciple before you—the youngest in the sect.”

Wei Jie clicked his tongue, shooting Qin Yue a rather aggrieved look. “I thought I’d be our master’s last disciple, the apple of everyone’s eye. In just a few years, you’ve taken my spot!”

With a pained expression, he handed over a pouch. “Knowing you were joining, I lost sleep for days!”

Everyone at the table burst into laughter.

“I’m not happy about it, but I still went out and found you some body-tempering elixirs. The instructions for medicinal baths are inside. Little Brother, when you make it, don’t forget your big brother here!”

Qin Yue was speechless.

He had thought the man was hostile, but it was just that he’d lost his “youngest disciple” status?

Wait, how could a scruffy man in his thirties be the youngest disciple? Feng Qianning—no, “my darling Ning”… ahem, the Holy Maiden—couldn’t possibly be older than that, could she?

This first gathering after joining Tianluo Sect left Qin Yue with two impressions: warmth—the members were friendly and familial; and a lack of unnecessary formality—the atmosphere was harmonious.

This so-called “demonic sect” was, in fact, full of righteousness and unity.

Though it was only his first impression, it was an excellent one.

No one drank much. Senior Brother Chen Qianzhang announced he was off to hunt down the evil cultivators.

“They used to hide in the shadows. Now that we know where they are, we won’t let them off lightly. Little Brother, you can’t risk exposure, but I don’t care. Sooner or later, I’ll strip them bare!”

Wei Jie and Chi Mingxu also had matters to attend to. After dinner, they bade him farewell and departed.

Hu Jiuyan needed to visit the magistrate’s office, as the case of the Sanhe Town massacre was not yet officially closed.

Mu Xingruo led Qin Yue and Feng Qianning to the sitting room, brewed tea for them, and poured each a cup.

She then handed Qin Yue a storage ring. “Inside are some spirit stones and magical tools as a welcome gift. There’s also an elixir of Linhuang grass juice I personally refined—it’s better than the one you have, and won’t fade. Unless you use another special solution, no one will ever know your original complexion.”

Qin Yue was stunned, instinctively glancing at Feng Qianning.