Days passed one by one.
Unexpectedly, ever since that day, Elder Chou hadn't stepped foot in Xie Zhaolin's courtyard again. Even over at Mo Yan's side, there hadn't been any blatant, intense entanglements.
Within Qingxi Sect, everything seemed to have returned to its usual calm.
Mo Yan visibly relaxed, no longer needing to be on edge every time he went out to handle mundane tasks, constantly bracing for the unpredictable elder with her sharp tongue. His entire aura felt lighter.
He even found time to tidy the little medicinal garden outside the courtyard with more care than before.
Xie Zhaolin watched all this unfold but didn't completely let her guard down.
Abnormal events always hide something strange.
Given the obsession and recklessness Elder Chou Qianzi had shown that day, there was no way she'd give up just because the Sect Master had refused her once. And that meaningful look she cast when leaving was far from a sign of surrender.
This calmness felt more like a dormant storm.
Perhaps she was waiting for the perfect opportunity, or… plotting something?
No matter what, Xie Zhaolin couldn't afford to take it lightly.
She spent her time consolidating her mid-stage Golden Core cultivation, nurturing the five little souls with the Soul-Nurturing Wood, while secretly keeping an eye on everything within the sect, especially anything concerning the Formation Peak, all through Mo Yan.
Yet Elder Chou's side remained unnervingly quiet. She seemed completely immersed in Formation Peak matters, staying secluded, rarely showing up even for routine gatherings within the sect.
This unusual calm only tightened Xie Zhaolin's tension.
Half a year slipped by in this near-eerie peace.
During these months, Xie Zhaolin had secluded herself completely, her cultivation fully stabilized at mid-stage Golden Core. The five little souls, nurtured by the Soul-Nurturing Wood, had fully recovered, even growing stronger than before.
Even more delightfully, with Zi Ying's help, the Soul-Nurturing Wood had grown taller than before. At this rate, reaching maturity was only a matter of time.
However, this calm was shattered one seemingly ordinary morning.
Dong—! Dong—! Dong—!
Three sharp, resounding strikes of the bell suddenly echoed across the sky of Qingxi Sect, carrying a mournful, ominous tone.
Xie Zhaolin snapped out of meditation, her figure flashing into the courtyard. She looked up toward the bell's direction, brow furrowed.
Mo Yan appeared immediately behind her, his expression grave. "Master… what's happening?"
Almost at the same time, anxious shouts came from other disciples not far from the courtyard. Many had been startled by the sudden funeral bell and hurried outside to investigate.
"Three tolls of the funeral bell! That's the signal for a peak lord's death!"
"The Sword Peak! It's from the Sword Peak! Peak Lord Ling…!" Another voice quivered, trailing off, but the meaning was clear.
"Impossible! Peak Lord Ling is a Golden Core peak-stage sword cultivator, sword technique unparalleled. I saw him just yesterday instructing disciples in the arena. How could he suddenly—"
"Could it be a cultivation mishap? A qi deviation?"
"Pah! Don't speak nonsense! Peak Lord Ling's foundation is deep; he wouldn't easily go astray. I think… he's been sabotaged!" A disciple whispered, fear and suspicion lacing their words.
"Sabotaged? Within Qingxi Sect? Who would dare?!"
The voices—gossip, exclamations, doubts—boiled through the sect like scalding water, spreading panic like a plague.
At that moment, several unstoppable streaks of light shot skyward from the main and subsidiary peaks like meteors, radiating suffocating pressure as they aimed straight for Sword Peak.
They were the Sect Master and several Nascent Soul elders.
A moment later, a commanding voice resounded across the peaks, thick with barely concealed fury and solemnity:
"All disciples, hear the order! Effective immediately, the sect is under full martial lockdown! No disciple may leave their peak without permission, no wandering is allowed. Anyone disobeying will be treated as a traitor!"
Before the voice even faded, the protective formation covering the sect blazed to life, emitting an intimidating radiance. Sharp divine senses swept over every corner like a celestial net.
"Lockdown! Return at once!"
"The Law Enforcement Hall's senior brothers are here! Move!"
Footsteps and door-slams erupted outside the courtyards as previously loud disciples quickly scurried back to their residences, daring not to linger.
Mo Yan's face had never looked so serious. "Master… Sword Peak's peak lord died suddenly, the sect is under lockdown… this matter—"
Xie Zhaolin raised a hand to stop him. Her gaze swept the sky, covered in the faint glow of the formation and the occasional streaks of rapid enforcers, a flicker of calculation in her eyes.
A Golden Core peak lord dying in the core sect area… this was far more complicated than she imagined.
Her mind immediately returned to Elder Chou, who had been silent for half a year, her Primordial Soul strange and chaotic.
At that thought, she sharply sensed a powerful divine sense sweep across her area.
Though it flashed by in an instant, it set alarm bells ringing in her mind.
The sect was conducting a search!
"Return and watch quietly," Xie Zhaolin said to Mo Yan, her voice calm, betraying no emotion.
"Yes!" Mo Yan immediately bowed and withdrew, recognizing the severity.
Xie Zhaolin stood in the courtyard, looking up at the formation-enshrouded sky, eyes cold as ice.
The Sword Peak peak lord died suddenly, the sect was under lockdown… this sudden turn of events completely threw off her plans. She had intended to sneak out in the coming days, to visit distant marketplaces or dangerous areas to see if she could find better materials for refining the Shiyue Ribbon.
Now, with the sect fully sealed, no one could come or go freely. She was trapped inside Qingxi Sect.
That wasn't even the worst part.
What worried her most was the strict internal inspection that inevitably followed, especially for disciples with suspicious behavior or unclear backgrounds.
Although her divine sense now rivaled early Nascent Soul cultivators, and ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators might not detect her true strength, she couldn't be sure the sect lacked special detection devices.
Once her true cultivation, especially her extraordinary Primordial Soul power, was revealed, massive trouble was guaranteed. By then, it wouldn't just be a question of competing for the Tianxu Secret Realm spot. Even leaving Qingxi Sect safely would be uncertain.
While Xie Zhaolin's mind raced through strategies, there was a crisp, steady knock at the courtyard door. At this sensitive moment, with the sect under lockdown and all disciples ordered to stay put… who could be visiting her?
Enforcers coming to investigate? Or someone else?
Xie Zhaolin silently extended her divine sense to check. When she "saw" the figure outside, she froze.
It was him.