Chapter Sixty: Your Teacher, Wen Sukong

Above, two masters stood just a step away from the threshold of the Dao, both at the peak of the fourth realm; at his side, three Golden Core cultivators clashed in chaotic battle.

Liutianfang first sent the young cultivators of Redwood Ridge back to the surface, urging them to flee, while he himself lingered indecisively, unsure what to do. He wished to spar with Li Yuanhua, but feared rumors of collusion between Qinglong Cave and Hundred Barbarian Mountain would tarnish his sect's reputation. He considered entering the evil pit directly to search for Cheng Qieqing, yet hesitated lest Redwood Ridge accuse him of taking advantage, entering first to seize the evil, thus losing decorum.

As he agonized over his choices, another stream of yin-yang mystical light swept in from the eastern sky. Its momentum was vast, like the ocean or the rosy dawn, causing all three Golden Core masters to halt their contest and gaze eastward, quietly wondering which house was now coming to claim the new evil spirit.

To the east, the nearest region was Three Rivers, whose strongest sects were Wuling Mountain of the Daoists and Hengshan Sword Sect. Which one was it? The mystical light drew closer, speed unabated, as if it meant to plunge straight into the evil pit. Seeing this, Li Yuanhua, Xinchenzi, and Hong Changbao—who moments ago had been locked in combat—rushed forward to intercept. If someone entered so easily, all their struggle would count for nothing.

The mystical light, confronted, transformed into a human figure and stood still. To everyone’s surprise, it was a woman.

The newcomer was a female Daoist, clad in a purple robe patterned with bats, her hair crowned with yellow cicada jade, her features delicate and beautiful. Her hands rested before her abdomen, arms cradling a red-yellow glass scepter, its radiance flowing like water. One end of the scepter was carved into a lingzhi fungus, the other into a leaping tiger—clearly a rare treasure.

"Wen Su Kong of Sanqing Mountain stands here. What reason do you have to bar my way?" she said coldly.

Li Yuanhua was taken aback—Sanqing Mountain? How could it be?

Liutianfang was even more astonished, stammering, "Su Kong, I’ve only just sent the signal arrow—how did you…?"

His signal arrow had been sent to Sanqing Mountain. The female Daoist glanced at him and replied,

"My disciple walks the world below, and naturally I left something upon him, though he himself is unaware. Now he faces peril, and I sensed it at once."

She fixed her gaze upon Liutianfang. "You knew my disciple was in danger and sent me word, but why did you not go in yourself to find him? Were these three obstructing you? Yet if they barred your way, why were they fighting while you stood aside?"

Liutianfang was at a loss, unable to answer.

Wen Su Kong, famed for her sharp tongue and exceptional intellect, had traveled the southwest in her youth. A mere sweep over the group allowed her to surmise the truth.

"You wish to fight, but fear gossip; wish to enter, yet dread criticism—am I right?"

Liutianfang, long familiar with Wen Su Kong’s cutting words, could only smile bitterly.

She looked him over again. "You’ve always been this way—must plan everything perfectly, else you’d rather do nothing. To put it harshly, you’re too cautious. I warned you, such a disposition is harmless at lower cultivation, but at higher realms, it becomes your undoing. Look at yourself—your Golden Core is but twice washed, while Hong Changbao and Xinchenzi, who once trailed behind, have reached three washes. This is why!"

Liutianfang nearly covered his face in shame.

Li Yuanhua was puzzled—what kind of woman was this, to so scold the Daoist master of Qinglong Cave? Hong Changbao and Xinchenzi watched as if attending a play, seemingly old acquaintances.

Wen Su Kong turned to Hong Changbao and Xinchenzi. "My disciple is in the evil pit; will you bar me?"

Hong Changbao immediately stepped aside. He hadn’t known who the newcomer was, but now, seeing her, he would not hinder her. Besides, he guessed that the guest of Qinglong Cave, personally vouched for by Liutianfang, must be her disciple. He added,

"Please proceed, Sister Wen. If you need anything, just call. To my shame, young Cheng entered the danger to save my Miao clansmen."

But Wen Su Kong was ungrateful, replying coldly, "Then why did you wait so long to rescue him? Have you grown used to ingratitude?"

Hong Changbao laughed dryly, offering no retort.

Xinchenzi seemed inclined to step aside, but looked skyward, uncertain.

"Disciple, withdraw at once. Sanqing Mountain’s high Dao stands coiled over the southeast, hardly covets the evil qi of our wild lands," came the voice of the Green-Robed Patriarch from above.

Relieved, Xinchenzi quickly moved aside.

Wen Su Kong recognized the gesture—Green-Robed Patriarch was giving face to Sanqing Mountain, reminding her to focus on rescue, not harvesting evil qi.

Thus, only Li Yuanhua remained blocking Wen Su Kong’s path.

"Sanqing Mountain, what a grand name. They fear you; Emei does not. Enough talk—let’s see whose hand prevails. Let my Xuan Ying Sword prove its edge! Win, and you may go as you please; lose, and never again stir up trouble in the southwest!"

He summoned the Xuan Ying Flying Sword before him, pointing it at Wen Su Kong.

Wen Su Kong glanced at him.

"Looks like the Bearded Immortal himself. I’ve long heard your name, but today I have no wish to spar. If you truly wish for death, you may join in."

With that, the female Daoist flicked her right hand upward, fingers together toward the sky. The void at her fingertips twisted, summoning forth two points of light, one black, one white.

The two lights circled each other, like tadpoles, spinning faster and brighter, forming a rotating Taiji diagram. Next, the trigrams of the Post-Heaven Eight Trigrams appeared around the Taiji.

The diagram spun ever faster, black and white blending into chaos, then into a sheet of brilliance. Upon closer inspection, the Taiji diagram had become a round mirror.

Li Yuanhua saw his own image within, a nameless terror enveloping him, recalling the ordeal of his fourth Golden Core cleansing not long ago.

"Ah, Daoist, you wish to enter the pit in search of someone—understandable. I too have a niece trapped within, and am anxious. Why not let you go first, and I’ll follow after?"

He withdrew his flying sword, clearing the way.

Wen Su Kong put away the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams Mirror and plunged into the evil pit.

Xinchenzi and Hong Changbao exchanged quiet smiles; though soft, their laughter made Li Yuanhua feel slightly embarrassed. Fortunately, his thick beard masked his expression.

———

Wen Su Kong, entering the cavern, sensed at once that the true evil lay below—the soaring radiance outside was merely the thin evil qi formed by underground evil evaporating with rainwater, far inferior to the genuine article.

The cavern’s breadth was unknown, its boundaries lost in darkness. The cave was pitch-black, but the true evil was dazzling—sometimes in clusters, sometimes in threads—making one feel as if amidst a sea of stars.

Yet as the first to enter after the collapse, Wen Su Kong had no leisure to admire the spectacle. Searching for someone in this vast evil pit was like finding a needle in the ocean.

"Whoosh—whoosh—"

Gales arose from unknown quarters within the cave, nearly sweeping her away, scattering the evil qi everywhere.

Her Tiger-Lingzhi Glass Scepter transformed into a mass of red-yellow spiritual light, shielding her from the evil’s corrosive force. She carefully avoided the evil, activating her magical sight to search, calling out as she did,

"Cloud Qi! Cloud Qi!"