The Beast Taming Sect cultivators Ma Qian encountered were just as arrogant. Hearing that Wen Jingshu was on her way, they didn't finish off Ma Qian immediately. Instead, they were actually interested in waiting for her arrival.
They even teased, “Is she sending us another thirty-odd prospects with spiritual roots?”
In their minds, the Four Great Sects had high standards but low capability, and those sent to recruit disciples in previous years had always been greenhorns at the Qi Refining Stage.
For Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators like them, going against Qi Refining Stage cultivators was an absolute mismatch, posing no threat whatsoever.
Ma Qian felt indignant looking at their arrogant expressions, but he could only endure it.
As time ticked away, Wen Jingshu arrived. Without a single word, she drew her sword and instantly killed the two Beast Taming Sect Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators.
They were mortal enemies; why waste her breath?
It wasn't until Wen Jingshu stood in front of Ma Qian and spoke to him that he finally snapped out of his daze.
Seeing Ma Qian still spacing out, Wen Jingshu waved her hand in front of his eyes and said once more:
“Junior Brother Ma, I'll have to trouble you to look after these children.”
“I have a few talismans here. If you encounter any more threats, just use them.”
Their encounter with the Beast Taming Sect on this trip could be considered an on-the-job injury, so Wen Jingshu would charge these expenses to the sect's account.
It wasn't that she lacked these items, but business was business, and personal was personal. The boundary had to be clear.
After saying this, Wen Jingshu asked, “Have the others contacted you?”
Only then did Ma Qian snap out of it. With trembling hands, he accepted the talismans, then reached for his transmission stone with equally shaky hands, speaking blankly:
“Thank you, Senior Brother Wu.”
“I'll contact them right away.”
He really couldn't be blamed for being so utterly bewildered! Who could have imagined that an inconspicuous fellow disciple Fang Chun had casually dragged along could instantly kill two Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators with a single strike?!
Could this really be an outer sect disciple? More like a personal disciple disguised as one to experience how the other half lives!
It had to be said that Ma Qian had guessed half of it right.
Wen Jingshu didn't have the spare time to experience life; she was just habitually using an alias.
When traveling abroad, Wen Jingshu truly felt insecure without an alias.
Unsurprisingly, Ma Qian failed to contact the remaining three.
Wen Jingshu didn't waste any time either. She directly took out her mission token and used the sect's unique tracking technique to locate the three.
After packing Ma Qian and his group onto the flying boat, Wen Jingshu slapped on another high-grade acceleration talisman and headed to the next location.
By the time Shen Kuo and his two companions arrived panting, all they saw were the decapitated bodies of the two Beast Taming Sect disciples and their own dumbfounded fellow disciples.
Without any time to explain, Shen Kuo and the other two called out to their respective fellow disciples to continue chasing after Wen Jingshu.
Wen Jingshu was extremely fast. It took her barely an hour to traverse the entire mortal realm.
Unfortunately, one of their fellow disciples had already been killed, and the children he had recruited were nowhere to be found.
Seeing this, Wen Jingshu made a prompt decision and said to the remaining people:
“Some unexpected situations have arisen during this mission. The recruitment process will be temporarily suspended. I have already set up a defensive formation plate and a concealment formation plate here. I will come find you once I've dealt with my business.”
“Contact me immediately if anything happens. Do not act on your own before I return.”
The other two fellow disciples, having just escaped death, still felt a sense of unreality. Ma Qian, however, had already recovered. Seeing Wen Jingshu prepare to leave after saying this, he quickly called out to her:
“The people from the Beast Taming Sect are clearly well-prepared. Senior Brother Wu, you must be careful.”
Wen Jingshu waved her hand to show she understood.
Just as she was about to leave, Shen Kuo and his group finally caught up: “Senior Brother Wu, please show some mercy. Could you protect us as well?”
“Don't worry, we won't take your help for granted. We'll pay you in spirit stones!”
Shen Kuo was from the Pill Sect, so Wen Jingshu naturally wouldn't stand by and do nothing. As for the people from the Xiaoyao Sect and the Heavenly Sword Sect...
Things had reached a point where this was no longer a simple grudge between them and the Beast Taming Sect. Rather, some friction between the major sects had spilled over to affect them.
They at this moment no longer represented just themselves, but the sects behind them.
It was only reasonable for her to do the three great sects a favor on behalf of the Qingyun Sect.
“Ma Qian, make the arrangements.”
Having said this, Wen Jingshu departed with Wei Ruxue.
The moment the two left, the remaining outer sect disciples erupted into a frenzy:
“What on earth is the background of this Senior Brother Wu? Is he really just an outer sect disciple of your Qingyun Sect?”
“Brother Ma, this is too underhanded of you! You secretly invited an expert to back you up! But we also have to thank this expert, otherwise we really would have been doomed.”
“And what's going on with the Beast Taming Sect? Aren't they just an obscure first-rate sect? How do they dare to openly challenge our Four Great Sects?”
“Forget it, this is already beyond the scope of our mission. I've already notified my sect's elders. Once we leave the mortal realm, our elders will naturally meet us.”
“Don't think too much about it. Let's get some proper rest...”
The group, having survived the ordeal, felt a lingering fear mixed with immense relief...
Fortunately, they had a senior brother among them who was playing the pig to eat the tiger! Otherwise, they really would have been finished!
Senior Brother Wu was practically their savior and second father!
...
Another half an hour later, guided by Wei Ruxue, Wen Jingshu successfully arrived at the Wei family residence.
However, the massive Wei estate was deathly silent. With trembling hands, Wei Ruxue pushed open the half-closed door, and a bloody sight met her eyes.
Nearly a hundred members of the Wei family, from top to bottom, had not a single survivor.
Wei Ruxue stumbled from door to door, pushing them open.
She was terrified of seeing her parents' corpses, hoping they had escaped with their lives.
Yet she was also afraid of not finding her parents' bodies, fearing they hadn't even been left intact in death.
Ultimately, her worst fears were realized. She saw her family members lying dead in various corners of the main hall.
Judging by their positions, it was clear they had lost their lives almost immediately after sending her away.
“Father, Mother... Eldest Brother, Eldest Sister, Second Brother! Open your eyes and look at me! I escaped from the Beast Taming Sect! I even met a kind immortal!”
“She promised to help me settle all of you! Hurry up and get up, come with me!”
“Why?! Why do I have a spiritual root?! If not for this spiritual root, they wouldn't have targeted me, and you wouldn't have... wouldn't have...”
Wei Ruxue collapsed onto her family's corpses, weeping in inconsolable grief.
Just three days ago, her mother had made her new clothes, and her father had secretly slipped her some pocket money.
Her eldest brother had bought her a new toy, and her eldest sister had bought her a new hairpin. Even her second brother, who was close to her in age, had hand-carved a small wooden horse and presented it to her like a treasure.
They were clearly such a happy family; how had things turned out like this?
She had clearly agreed to go with the Beast Taming Sect's people, so why did they still silence them by slaughtering them?
Wen Jingshu watched Wei Ruxue cry until she was breathless, silently keeping watch by her side.
Cultivators possessed long lifespans. Watching their loved ones grow old, fall ill, die one by one, or be murdered in vendettas was a path every cultivator had to walk.
The talisman cultivator Wen Jingshu silently gazed at the night sky, unable to help but think of her own family.
Her greatest regret in this lifetime was not being able to go back and see them one last time.
She wondered if her mother had regretted letting her go to the cultivation world before she died.
Rate on N.U.
