Am I the old man who's always by my apprentices' side?

Chapter 17 Justice
Spiritual energy can refine true qi; this is something Chang Ping'an knew during his cultivation.

But he didn't expect that spiritual power could not only refine true qi, but also forcibly absorb the true qi of others!
The spiritual energy within his body acted like a pump, forcing his opponent to mobilize their true energy to fight back, leaving them no time to attend to anything else. Even when Du Jingshan exhausted his power, he could only watch helplessly as his true energy was sucked away like a flood.

Soon, the true qi meridians in Du Jingshan's body were completely disordered. Even if he stopped the damage now, his decades of cultivation would be wasted. Moreover, his whole body was so stiff that he couldn't move at all, so he couldn't stop the damage at all!

He was being pulled up by that suction force, unable to move forward or backward; he was trapped in a dead end!

His face initially showed anger and resentment, but gradually it was replaced by regret and pleading.

Chang Ping'an seemed not to see it at all, his face expressionless, letting the spiritual power in his palm devour that true energy.

In just a few breaths, Du Jingshan's once firm skin gradually became loose and withered, and his hair turned gray in the blink of an eye.

It was only at this moment that Wan Qizhongqiu finally realized something was wrong. His belated figure suddenly sped up, and then he struck Du Jingshan's arm with a palm strike.

Wanqi Zhongqiu's cultivation level is not low, but it is only enough to reach the fifth rank, which is equivalent to Du Jingshan. In terms of actual combat, he is probably not as good as Du Jingshan.

So when he saw something strange about the standoff between the two, he didn't dare to use his true energy at first. Instead, he relied entirely on brute force to break them apart.

However, at this moment, Du Jingshan was at his limit and collapsed to the ground, looking emaciated and as if he had aged thirty years. He also clearly showed signs of having lost all his true qi cultivation.

He hesitated, wanting to say something, but couldn't utter a single word.

"How could it come to this? How could it come to this!"

Seeing Du Jingshan in this state, Wan Qizhongqiu sighed repeatedly: "I know you have grievances in your heart, but you didn't have to be so harsh. Sigh!"

Chang Ping'an, still sporting a poker face, said, "He attacked me, so he has to bear the consequences."

As they spoke, the stewards and disciples stepped forward one after another. They glanced fearfully at Chang Ping'an, carefully helped Du Jingshan up, and huddled behind Wan Qizhongqiu like quails.

Wanqi Zhongqiu was speechless, choked by Chang Ping'an's blunt words. He sighed again and said, "Alas! Yes, Jingshan was a bit impulsive. After all, it's natural to feel some grief over the death of one's disciple. But you went too far. It's really, really against the natural order..."

That's a shameless statement. Du Jingshan clearly wanted to take Chang Ping'an away but failed, and out of anger and embarrassment, he tried to establish his authority through a sneak attack.

He arrived late and only saw the sword move that killed Xie Yan. He didn't know that Xie Yan was killed in one move. He thought it was just a simple sparring match between the two, and that Xie Yan was inferior in skill. That's why he felt sorry for Xie Yan.

But Chang Ping'an didn't respect him as the sect leader or elder—that was the real reason he wanted to teach Chang Ping'an a lesson.

Chang Pingan looked up at the crowd of people with different expressions not far away and said calmly, "I didn't make a move. If I had, he would have ended up like Xie Yan."

Xie Yan's body still lay to one side, the stench of blood long since dissipated, but it was only at this moment that everyone seemed to be awakened and realized what had happened.

One of the inner sect female disciples who used to be closest to Xie Yan suddenly put on a humiliated expression. Although her face was pale and her legs were trembling with fear, she still gritted her teeth and cursed, "You! You scoundrel, such behavior is tantamount to betraying your master and ancestors! Second Master, how can you let him go like this?"

“Senior sister, you…” A disciple wanted to stop his senior sister, but dared not say anything. He just called out softly, his face pale.

But the female disciple still held her head high and said fiercely, "What's there to be afraid of! My master has been harmed like this by him, how can I, as his disciple, not seek justice?"

"Ha, fairness?"

Before Chang Ping'an could even speak, it was the outer disciple surnamed Xu who had been the first to inform everyone that it was coming.

This man was named Xu Ying. He was the youngest son of a scholarly family in Jiangnan. Because he disliked studying, he left home to learn martial arts and came to the Sword Casting Manor.

Xu Ying inquired for a long time and spent a considerable amount of money to finally become a disciple of the manor. However, he wasted five years and remained an outer disciple. Because he spoke with a Jiangnan accent, he was often ridiculed and bullied.

Seeing his junior brother, who used to be even worse off than him, so triumphant, he felt a surge of anger welling up inside him, and he felt an urge to vent his pent-up frustrations.

He stepped out of the crowd, stood beside Chang Ping'an, and sneered, "If the sect leader and elders recognized justice, would they have allowed Xie Yan to act arrogantly and domineeringly for so many years?"

When he spoke, Chang Ping'an was somewhat surprised and couldn't help but look over.

Xu Ying grinned and smiled amicably, then turned away, her face flushed, and said angrily, "They don't care about the death of their own disciples, but come up to punish the person who killed them. When that fails, they hold a grudge and launch a sneak attack. What a despicable sect leader! I've been in the Sword Forging Manor for five years, and only now do I understand how vile they are!"

The female disciple stomped her foot in anger: "You traitor! You see someone powerful and want to climb the social ladder, don't you? You've betrayed the sect's five years of nurturing you. Don't you feel ashamed?"

Xu Ying rolled his eyes: "The Chang family boy is just one person, where does he get any power? Besides, apart from taking five hundred strings of cash from me and letting me come in as a handyman to learn a few rudimentary skills, what kind of training has this Sword Casting Manor given me?"

"you--"

"Alright," Wan Qizhongqiu interrupted the two's argument, saying, "It was indeed Jingshan who acted impulsively first. Even if the Chang family boy hit hard, he wasn't really wrong. Let's just let it go. As for you..."

He looked at Xu Ying carefully, but couldn't recall the name. He could only vaguely mention the name and said, "The Sword Forging Manor has never charged money for its disciples. I was unaware that there were such treacherous people among us who dared to act this way... However, it is ultimately my fault as the Second Master who failed to manage his subordinates properly. How about this, you will become my disciple from now on, and I will personally teach you to make up for my mistakes? What do you say?"

Xu Ying was taken aback at first, seemingly not expecting Wan Qizhongqiu to make such a suggestion. There was a hint of struggle in his eyes, but when he turned his head and saw Chang Ping'an, he calmed down, shook his head, and bowed to Wan Qizhongqiu, saying, "I dare not. I know that my talent is mediocre and I am not favored by the sect. Today, I bid farewell to the Sword Casting Manor as a lesson learned by spending five hundred strings of cash. I dare not trouble the Second Master to vouch for me!"

“Alas, so be it. In the end, it is my Sword Forging Manor that is in the wrong. Guards, in my name, present this young friend with five hundred strings of cash.” Wan Qizhongqiu gestured to the steward beside him before continuing to say to Xu Ying, “I hope that you will give me face and accept these five hundred strings of cash, otherwise I will be unable to eat or sleep in peace from now on!”

"Second Master, you're too kind. Paying money to learn skills is only right and proper. I've learned some skills at the Sword Forging Manor, and I can't just let it go to waste. I wouldn't be happy if my own true energy channels were destroyed. Second Master, please don't humiliate me with money. I really dare not accept it."

After saying this, Xu Ying gave a slight bow, turned around and strode towards the gate, not even bothering to pack his personal belongings.

My editor informed me today that it should be a trial release next week, yay!
P.S.: Please continue reading!! This is a crucial test to get readership data, so please, dear readers, don't let the book become a paid subscription!!!

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(End of this chapter)