In Emei, start by obtaining golden attributes.

Chapter 127 Identity Determines Stance

After Zhu Wushi nodded in acknowledgment, Shangguan Haitang frowned.

"Among the six major sects, the Emei Sect, the Kongtong Sect, the Huashan Sword Sect, and the Kunlun Sect are only second-rate forces and are not considered anything in the martial arts world. However, the Wudang Sect is a first-rate force, with Zhang Sanfeng, the Master Zhang, presiding over it. To some extent, its influence and deterrent power are not low compared to top forces such as Shaolin and Cihang Jingzhai."

“Even if Yang Dingtian were still alive, the Ming Cult wouldn’t dare to provoke him casually, let alone in the current situation of the Ming Cult. Provoking the six major sects at the same time is tantamount to courting death. Although Yang Xiao is not as good as Yang Dingtian, he is by no means such a fool. This matter seems to be suspicious.”

Thinking of this, Shangguan Haitang suddenly thought of Gu Shaoan.

He immediately blurted out, "If that's the case, then..."

But when her gaze fell upon Zhu Wushi in front of her, Shangguan Haitang's tone changed, "Won't the six major sects run into trouble? Does Godfather know who is plotting behind this?"

Zhu Wushi shook his head and said, "When I first noticed this, I was also curious. But when I secretly sent people to investigate, I found nothing. It can only be said that the person behind this is very careful."

Hearing this, Shangguan Haitang's mood became even heavier.

As the number one "Xuan" in the Dragon Guard Manor, Shangguan Haitang naturally knew that the strongest force in the Dragon Guard Manor was not the people within the manor, but the intelligence network that Zhu Wushi had painstakingly built over the decades.

Even so, Zhu Wushi was unaware of the mastermind behind the Six Major Sects and the Bright Peak incident, which is enough to show that the ability of the person behind it is far beyond that of an ordinary person.

After thinking for a moment, Shangguan Haitang asked, "In recent years, Cao Cao's power has grown so great. Since there is such an opportunity, why doesn't Godfather remind the six major sects to be on good terms with Wudang and Shaolin, and then win them over to fight against Cao Cao?"

Zhu Wushi sighed softly and said, "Although Wudang and Shaolin are Jianghu forces, they are quite different from other Jianghu forces. Even if I wanted to win them over, they would never participate in the court struggles."

"Moreover, we don't even know who is behind this, so getting involved rashly would be harmful and not beneficial."

Then, Zhu Wushi looked at Shangguan Haitang and said, "Remember, our goal is in the struggles of the imperial court, not in the martial world."

"Let the affairs of the martial world be settled within the martial world. For us, the enemy is still Cao Zhengchun. There's no need to get too involved in the affairs of the martial world."

Upon hearing this, Shangguan Haitang nodded absentmindedly in response.

Zhu Wushi narrowed his eyes slightly as he took in Shangguan Haitang's reaction.

In May, thirty li outside Luyang Prefecture, the night rain had not yet stopped.

The abandoned mountain god temple appeared even more dilapidated under the heavy, cold rain.

The remaining half of the roof barely covered the area near the shrine, and rainwater poured down like broken beads from the uncovered parts and the huge hole in the roof, splashing up murky water in the puddles on the ground.

The night wind, carrying moisture, seeped in through the empty doors, windows, and cracks in the walls, emitting a low, mournful murmur.

Inside the dilapidated temple, a bonfire had dispelled the darkness.

The damp firewood burned incompletely, crackling and sputtering, the flames flickering and casting heavy, swaying shadows on everyone's faces.

Around the campfire, about a dozen men sat huddled together.

They were all dressed in coarse cloth shorts or tight-fitting clothes. Although the edges were wet from the rain, showing their fatigue from the journey, their brows revealed a rugged and valiant spirit.

Many people had long and short weapons at hand, with a simple, flame-like symbol faintly visible on the scabbards or packs.

This indicates that these people are disciples of the Ming Cult.

"Damn it, I don't know what's wrong with the Emei, Kunlun and Kongtong sects these past few years, they've been going against our Ming Cult one after another."

"I heard that last month, the Five Elements Flags and Sharp Gold Flags brothers stationed in Baiyang Town were wiped out by the Kunlun Sect."

"Who says otherwise! Many brothers in the sect are worried that they might suddenly run into people from the six major sects one day."

"Sigh! I don't know what's gotten into Wudang and Shaolin. We Ming Cult and they have been keeping to ourselves for the past few years, but in the last two years they've started targeting us."

A moment later, one of the Ming Cult members looked at a tall, muscular man who appeared to be in his forties and said, "Brother Xiong, do you think that given the current situation of our Ming Cult and the six major sects, something big might actually happen later?"

Upon hearing this, the Ming Cult disciples around also turned to look at the man surnamed "Xiong".

Upon seeing this, Xiong Dehai also let out a heavy sigh.

"It's hard to say!"

Facing the gazes of his brothers, Xiong Dehai said in a deep voice, "If it were just Emei, Kunlun, Huashan Sword Sect and Kongtong Sect, even if the four sects were united, it wouldn't matter. But the key is that now there are two more forces, Wudang Sect and Shaolin."

"If the conflict between my Ming Cult and the six major sects intensifies further, I'm afraid the two sides will really fight to the death."

At this point, Xiong Dehai sighed, "If Leader Yang hadn't disappeared, and if my Ming Cult's left and right protectors, the four great Dharma Kings, and the five scattered disciples were all still alive, even if the Kunlun Sect had a few extra lives, they wouldn't dare to bare their teeth at my Ming Cult. But now... sigh..."

After saying that, Xiong Dehai couldn't help but shake his head.

Everyone else reacted the same way when they saw Xiong Dehai, who had been a member of the Ming Cult for over twenty years, and their worries deepened.

Suddenly, the crackling sound from the fire in front of me became irritating.

For a moment, the atmosphere inside the dilapidated temple became somewhat solemn.

Taking in everyone's reactions, Xiong Dehai pondered for a moment before speaking to comfort them: "Alright, don't overthink it. After all, we still have Leader Yang and the Bat King guarding Bright Peak, and my Ming Cult has over ten thousand disciples. Even if the six major sects unite, they won't be able to take Bright Peak."

"After we return to Bright Peak, everyone should try to spend less time outside and more time cultivating."

Hearing what Xiong Dehai said, the others' expressions improved a bit.

As the saying goes, even a starved camel is bigger than a horse.

Even though the Ming Cult has been declining for the past decade, it is still a force that ordinary people cannot compare to.

In the eyes of the Ming Cult members, the six major sects would not do something so foolish as to cause mutual destruction.

"boom!"

Just then, with a loud "bang," the already dilapidated temple door was violently smashed open by a powerful force.

Immediately afterwards, more than a dozen figures surged into the dilapidated temple.

These people wore straw raincoats, underneath which were uniform blue close-fitting clothes. The collars and cuffs of their clothes were embroidered with cloud patterns, and the emblem of a slender sword embroidered in the center of their chests indicated that they were all disciples of the Huashan Sword Sect.

Rainwater dripped from their cold bamboo hats and raincoats, forming small streams on the ground.

Upon seeing the group of Huashan Sword Sect disciples suddenly burst into the dilapidated temple, the Ming Cult disciples sitting around the fire immediately stood up, their expressions wary.

The air seemed to freeze for a moment, with only the strained burning of the campfire and the patter of raindrops filling the dilapidated temple.

Inside the Huashan Sword Sect, the leading middle-aged man was tall and upright, around forty years old, with a resolute and cold face. His eyes, like the sword in his hand, were sharp yet restrained.

Rain streamed down his cheeks, but he didn't wipe it away. His gaze was sharp as lightning, instantly sweeping over the bewildered and wary faces around the campfire, especially the flame markings on their weapons and the aura they exuded during their conversation.

In an instant, a murderous intent as cold as frost and snow gathered in his sharp eyes.

His voice was not loud, but each word was clear, filled with righteous indignation and icy coldness, echoing through the dilapidated temple through the sound of rain: "Hmph! They are demonic cultists, leave no one alive."

As soon as he finished speaking, the middle-aged man moved, and his long sword was suddenly drawn.

With a flick of the sword tip, it transformed into three cold stars, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air, heading straight for Xiong Dehai.

The moment the middle-aged man moved, the dozen or so disciples of the Huashan Sword Sect behind him moved in unison, their movements as synchronized as a well-trained pack of wolves. The instant the middle-aged man launched his attack, they moved in perfect unison, their longswords flashing like snakes, carrying the cold and swift style unique to Huashan swordsmanship, as they fiercely attacked the Ming Cult disciples who were hastily responding to the attack.

"Clang! Clang! Splat—!"

In an instant, the crisp sounds of weapons clashing, the dull thuds of impact, and shouts echoed throughout the dilapidated temple in the rainy night.

The flickering firelight cast dappled shadows on the brutal battle. However, as the two sides clashed, the Ming Cult's side quickly found themselves at a disadvantage.

As Xiong Dehai's throat was slashed open by the sword, scalding blood splattered onto the mottled, cold shrine, the remaining Ming Cult disciples were powerless to fight back.

Before long, more than a dozen Ming Cult disciples lay either lying face up in pools of blood with their eyes wide open in anger, or curled up in the mud, motionless and silent.

Inside the temple, after wiping the blood off the blades without sheathing their swords, several disciples of the Huashan Sword Sect spoke with smiles.

"Hey, these Ming Cult bastards are really weak."

"That's right, these dozen or so people are not as good as those Houtuqi people we slaughtered a few days ago."

At this moment, the middle-aged man who was in charge spoke up: "Alright, there are Ming Cult people here, so it's probably not a safe place. Let's hurry on our way and find another place, and meet up with the people from other sects as soon as possible. Before our six major sects besiege the Ming Cult, let's hunt down as many demons as possible who want to return to the Ming Cult."

After speaking, led by the middle-aged man, the group of Huashan Sword Sect members stepped out of the dilapidated temple again.

However, just as they were about to step out of the door, the middle-aged man from the Huashan Sword Sect who was leading the group suddenly glanced at the corpses of the Ming Cult disciples on the ground of the dilapidated temple.

After pausing briefly on a "corpse" on the ground, he left with the others.

He then expressionlessly looked away and continued walking, completely disappearing into the boundless darkness and storm outside the door.

Half an hour later, just as the only sound in the dilapidated temple was the crackling of burning wet firewood, a man suddenly jumped up from the ground.

As luck would have it, this person was the Ming Cult disciple whose gaze had lingered on the middle-aged man who had led the Huashan Sword Sect before he left.

Looking around at his companions who had been talking with him not long ago, now turned into cold corpses, the last remaining Ming Cult disciple, with a stab wound to his chest, almost forced out a few words through clenched teeth.

"Hua-shan-Sword-Sect".

After the Ming Cult disciple took out a medicine bottle to treat his wounds and put on a raincoat, he quickly walked to the entrance of the dilapidated temple and plunged into the pouring rain.

However, just as this Ming Cult disciple left, three figures suddenly emerged from behind the clay statue of a Bodhisattva enshrined in the dilapidated temple.

It was none other than Gu Shaoan, Zhou Zhiruo, and Yang Yan.

However, unlike the others, the three people were not wearing the gold and white robes of the Emei disciples.

Gu Shaoan wore a black robe, while Zhou Zhiruo and Yang Yan wore a green dress and a crescent-white dress, respectively.

After shifting her gaze from the Ming Cult corpses on the ground, Zhou Zhiruo said softly, "Something was off about that group of people just now. The one from the Ming Cult who was alive just now seems to have been deliberately left alive by the Huashan Sword Sect."

But then, Zhou Zhiruo asked with a puzzled look, "Why would the Huashan Sword Sect leave one alive for no reason?"

Yang Yan, who was standing to the side, also looked thoughtful.

"Moreover, the fact that the six major sects were preparing to besiege the Ming Cult was kept secret by our sect leaders, uncles, and masters. As a result, very few people in our Emei Sect knew about this matter."

"Before we came down the mountain, even the elders in the sect did not know that the six major sects had joined forces. It was impossible for the people of Huashan Sword Sect not to know the stakes involved. Logically, except for important people, they should have kept this news a secret. But just now, those people from Huashan Sword Sect not only knew about it, but also casually revealed it even though they knew there were survivors in Ming Cult."

Zhou Zhiruo nodded and said, "It feels like the people from the Huashan Sword Sect deliberately left someone alive and then leaked the news of the six major sects besieging the Ming Cult to this Ming Cult disciple."

Hearing Zhou Zhiruo's words, Yang Yan said, "Something's not right. Those people just now shouldn't be from the Huashan Sword Sect, and they're very likely not even from the six major sects."

As they pondered the matter more deeply, both Zhou Zhiruo and Yang Yan's expressions became somewhat solemn.

Clearly, after what had happened before, both women sensed that something was amiss.

Yang Yan looked enlightened and said, "No wonder. I was wondering why, given the current situation of the Ming Cult, it's one thing to bully the Kunlun Sect, the Kongtong Sect, and the Huashan Sword Sect on ordinary days, but how come in recent years they have not only provoked my Emei Sect, but even dared to provoke forces like Shaolin and Wudang? It turns out that someone is stirring up a fight between the six major sects and the Ming Cult behind the scenes."

Zhou Zhiruo suddenly looked at Gu Shaoan beside her and asked, "Junior brother, did you already guess it before?"

Gu Shaoan nodded in acknowledgment.

"After all, the Ming Cult's actions over the past three years have been too abnormal."

Zhou Zhiruo thought for a moment and said, "That's true. I didn't notice it before, but now that I think about it, the Ming Cult's actions over the past three years have been a bit too deliberate."

Yang Yan turned her head to look at Gu Shaoan.

"Could it be that when Master and Senior Uncle, the Sect Leader, went to Wudang Sect for a meeting, Senior Brother led us to Bright Peak? It turns out he had sensed something was wrong all along."

Immediately afterward, Zhou Zhiruo changed the subject: "Since it's confirmed that something is wrong, why didn't you capture those people from the Huashan Sword Sect and interrogate them just now, Junior Brother?"

Zhou Zhiruo clearly saw the strength of those people just now.

Let alone Gu Shaoan.

She could easily solve it all by herself.

Gu Shaoan gently shook his head.

"Now that we've confirmed there's definitely a problem, taking any rash action might alert them."

"Should we report what's going on here to Master?" Zhou Zhiruo asked.

Gu Shaoan thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about it after Master and Martial Aunt Juechen arrive!"

Zhou Zhiruo asked in bewilderment, "Since you already know that there is a problem with the conflict between the Six Major Sects and the Ming Cult, why not just say that you want to avoid a bloodbath between the Six Major Sects and the Ming Cult?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Shaoan sighed and said, "Currently, the identity of the person instigating behind the six major sects and the Ming Cult is unknown, but all the clues on the surface point to the Ming Cult."

"For the disciples of the six major sects, all the deaths and injuries they have suffered in recent years are the work of the Ming Cult. If the Ming Cult is not eliminated, how can the six major sects maintain their dignity? How can they stand in the martial arts world in the future?"

"Secondly, putting aside Wudang and Shaolin for the time being, Kunlun, Huashan Sword Sect, and Kongtong are only second-rate sects in the martial arts world, while Ming Cult is a first-rate force."

"If a few second-rate forces were to destroy the Ming Cult, which is a first-rate force, and do so under the guise of punishing evil and promoting good, the benefits to Kunlun, Huashan Sword Sect, and Kongtong Sect would be considerable."

"Not to mention that the Ming Cult has stood strong in the martial arts world for a century, possesses a superior martial art like the Great Shift of the Universe, and has accumulated a wealth of gold and silver over the past hundred years. How could the Kunlun Sect, the Huashan Sword Sect, and the Kongtong Sect not be tempted?"

At this point, Gu Shaoan changed the subject and continued, "If Yang Dingtian, the leader of the Ming Cult, were still alive, the Ming Cult would still be at its zenith. Even Shaolin would not think of attacking the Ming Cult, as the disadvantages would outweigh the advantages. However, the Ming Cult is now leaderless, and Yang Xiao alone is not enough to deter the six major sects."

"In addition, there are old grudges between the Ming Cult and Shaolin, Kunlun, Kongtong, Huashan Sword Sect, and my Emei."

"Even if the six major sects knew that the conflict with the Ming Cult in recent years was likely instigated by someone behind the scenes, they would still unite to attack the Ming Cult."

Zhou Zhiruo and Yang Yan were unaware of the conflict, but Gu Shaoan knew about it.

Abbess Miejue's elder brother died at the hands of Xie Xun, the Golden-haired Lion King of the Ming Cult.

Gu Hongzi, his childhood sweetheart and beloved fellow disciple, died because of Yang Xiao.

The fact that two of her closest relatives died at the hands of the Ming Cult gives an idea of ​​the extent of Abbess Miejue's hatred and disgust for the Ming Cult.

To be honest, over the years, the fact that Abbess Miejue has been able to restrain herself and not turn evil by leading the entire Emei Sect to attack Bright Peak shows that she cares about the Emei Sect and is worthy of her position as the sect leader.

Now that there is such an opportunity to destroy the Ming Cult, even if others could agree, Abbess Miejue would not.

If things are really muddied up, it might even cause a rift between master and disciple.

Gu Shaoan wouldn't be so foolish as to jeopardize his master-disciple relationship with Abbess Miejue for the sake of the Ming Cult, which has nothing to do with him.

Identity determines one's stance, and stance determines the angle of thinking.

As a member of the Emei Sect and a disciple of Abbess Miejue, Gu Shaoan's starting point was naturally to prioritize the Emei Sect and Abbess Miejue.

　I kept dozing off while writing, I was so sleepy! So this chapter is a bit late! Sorry!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)