Chapter 87: Two Choices

“Oh, Master is really something else. As soon as there’s a disagreement, he locks me in this place for solitary confinement, and I don’t even know when it will end.” Inside a stone room built entirely from massive rocks, a green-clothed woman with fair skin and delicate features sat. Her slender fingers supported her pale chin, while her clear, sparkling eyes, like shining gems, gazed blankly at a pitch-black stone bed nearby.

“Master said that if someone suddenly appears on this bed, I could avoid punishment. But obviously, this condition is fake. How could someone just appear out of nowhere? According to the records of our sect, no one has ever appeared here in the past thousand years.” Although Mu Qiao had a caring master, the master was rather rigid. As soon as she made a mistake, he locked her up in solitary confinement.

This stone room had once been a forbidden area long ago, but later, for unknown reasons, it became a place for punishing disciples who broke the rules.

Spacious and airtight, the room had rough stone walls all around, with only a single stone bed in the center and nothing else.

As Mu Qiao was pondering how to spend the next month in isolation, suddenly the air above the stone bed seemed to twist, and a figure dropped down from nowhere, landing silently on the bed motionless.

Mu Qiao immediately stood up, stunned. What was going on? How could someone suddenly appear out of thin air?

Swallowing hard, Mu Qiao, unable to see clearly just yet, cautiously approached the figure step by step, determined to find out who this person was.

“Drip… Drip…”

Her crystal-clear eyes suddenly widened in alarm. A chill ran down her spine. What was that sound?

“Ahh…” When Mu Qiao finally saw the figure on the stone bed, she screamed in terror, immediately covering her mouth, unable to believe what she was seeing.

So much blood.

So many wounds.

Even worse, there was a gaping hole through the person’s shoulder, exposing the white bone beneath, which terrified her.

“Is he… dead?”

As Mu Qiao’s fearful eyes scanned the figure, she suddenly noticed something between the person’s legs, causing her to blush furiously and scream again.

“Master, help!” Mu Qiao turned and ran as fast as she could, unable to bear the horrifying sight.

The stone room had an entrance with no lock, so one could leave freely. However, for disciples of the sect, no one dared to leave before their confinement period was over.

…

Not sure how much time had passed.

Lin Fan felt as if his consciousness was a small boat on the sea, facing a violent storm, drifting and unstable, at any moment likely to be swallowed by the raging waves.

Darkness, not a single ray of light.

Have I already died?

At this moment, the storm grew stronger, and the boat had already capsized. Lin Fan closed his eyes helplessly, sinking into the sea, gradually descending deeper.

He felt no sensation, no strength, seemingly destined to sink forever.

“Lin Shidi, you can do it.”

“Lin Shidi, hang in there, stay alive.”

“Swim upward with all your strength. Don’t sink down.”

…

At that moment, one by one, the familiar faces of Lin Fan appeared before him, each wearing a smile.

“Senior brothers…” Lin Fan murmured softly.

“Ahh…”

At this moment, Lin Fan shouted, exerting all his strength to climb upward from the sea, but each step became more difficult than the last.

…

“Master, he’s awake.”

At this point, Lin Fan felt some noise around him. A ray of light pierced his eyes, making it temporarily impossible to open them. After a while, when his vision adjusted, several shadowy figures appeared before him.

“Senior brothers… Master…” Lin Fan, with blurry vision, struggled to open his mouth. But when he finally saw clearly who was standing in front of him, he lowered his head.

These weren’t his senior brothers, nor was it Master.

“He’s awake. Rest well now. I’m sure you have a lot on your mind, but don’t worry. You’re safe here. No one will harm you. We’ll leave now. Let him have some peace.”

“Yes, Master.”

…

After everyone left, Lin Fan looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings, puzzled about where he was. Finally, had Master sent him here? Where exactly was this place? Had the sect really been destroyed?

…

At this moment, in a grand hall.

“Master, this is the only disciple left from Master Heiyan. I think we should take him in.” Standing within the grand hall, a middle-aged man with a commanding presence spoke with a somber expression.

Standing above the hall, a man held a token. This token had been sent by the Old Ancestor of the Saint Demon Sect, who had used all his energy to send Lin Fan here.

The token recorded the destruction of the Saint Demon Sect and detailed Lin Fan’s situation.

In the token, the Saint Demon Ancestor pleaded for this sect to save Lin Fan, take him in, and allow the Saint Demon Sect to pass down its legacy through its sole heir.

“I’ve already made my decision. Master Heiyan was an ancestor of our sect. Now that his sect has been destroyed, naturally we must properly care for his only disciple. Later, you should go ask him whether he wishes to return to our sect or continue carrying on his sect’s legacy. If he chooses the latter, give him the unnamed peak in the northwest.” Yan Hongyu, the Saint Sect’s Master, sighed and shook his head.

This was a gesture of respect from a sect leader toward an ancestral master.

Although it had been a thousand years since Master Heiyan had gone to Cangling Continent to establish a branch sect, as the main sect’s leader, he naturally could not ignore this matter.

“Master, this might not be appropriate. This disciple’s talent has been shattered; he likely has no future in cultivation. Giving him the Unnamed Peak may provoke discontent among other sect members.”

“The decision has been made. If anyone has objections, let them come directly to me. From now on, the Unnamed Peak will be renamed Saint Demon Peak, becoming a branch sect under the Saint Sect. This disciple will be the sixth-generation Saint Demon Sect Leader. Fellow seniors should offer him more support and assistance.” After making his decision, Master Yan waved his sleeve and left.

“Senior Wuya, why do you think Master did this? There’s really no need to give away the Unnamed Peak,” Yan Zhanwen asked, still puzzled.

Wuya shook his head with a faint smile. “Yan junior, you probably don’t know. Master Heiyan once saved Master Yan’s ancestor, and later helped him join the Saint Sect. This was a great kindness. Master Yan is a man of deep emotions and righteousness. Besides, what harm could giving away the Unnamed Peak do? This disciple’s talent has already been shattered; he will never reach higher cultivation realms. In a hundred years, he will turn to dust anyway.”

“Alright, enough said. Let’s go check on that young man. I wonder when he will recover from the tragedy of his sect’s destruction. It’s truly a pity for such a promising youth.” With a shake of his head, Wuya expressed regret.

They had already learned from the information on the token that this disciple had consumed the essence of a fierce beast to forcefully boost his powers, but the side effects had injured him severely, thus ruining his future cultivation path.

They had no doubts about a disciple who had stood by his sect in life and death, and even felt admiration toward him.

It was indeed fortunate for a sect to have disciples like him.