Fantasy, starting with a treasure bowl

"You are supposed to be inner disciples, yet you are behaving like frightened birds. What kind of behavior is this!"

Seeing Xu Linfeng's panicked expression, Gongsun Jian also frowned slightly and asked in a deep voice, "What exactly happened?"

"Reporting to Senior Brother! It's...it's something that happened at the Soul Palace!"

Faced with Gongsun Jian's questioning, Xu Linfeng dared not be negligent in the slightest. He immediately bowed his head and spoke with a hint of hesitation, "Just now, when I was patrolling past the Soul Hall, I suddenly noticed that Senior Brother Li, the number one disciple of the inner sect, seems to have a natal soul lamp that..."

"What happened to Lin Yue's natal soul lamp? Tell me quickly!"

Seeing that Xu Linfeng was still stammering, Gongsun Jian got a little angry and said impatiently.

"Senior Brother, please calm down!"

Seeing Gongsun Jian's public outburst, Xu Linfeng was terrified. He immediately knelt down and kowtowed tremblingly, saying, "I discovered that not only has Senior Brother Li's natal soul lamp been completely extinguished, but the natal soul lamps of other outer disciples have also dimmed considerably. I estimate the total number is no less than twenty..."

"What did you say?!"

Upon hearing this, Gongsun Jian's heart sank, and his entire being instantly filled with murderous intent. "Who did this?! How dare they attack a disciple of my Taiji Sword Sect? Could it be those demons from the Wusheng Demonic Sect again?!"

The Soul Hall is one of the eight halls of the Taiji Sword Sect. Although it is not as important as the other seven halls, it contains the life-life soul lamps of all the disciples. Once the life-life soul lamp goes out, it means that its original owner is likely to be in grave danger!

If what Xu Linfeng said is true, not only did Li Linyue, the number one disciple of the inner sect, die, but more than 20 other outer sect disciples also died. Even for a powerful sect like the Taiji Sword Sect, this is a considerable loss!

Therefore, Gongsun Jian was naturally furious and wanted to find out the real culprit behind the murder of Li Linyue and others.

"Replying to Senior Brother! I am also unaware of these circumstances...!"

Still kneeling and kowtowing, Xu Linfeng didn't dare to breathe loudly, seemingly terrified by the enraged Gongsun Jian before him. His voice trembled as he said, "I only know that Senior Brother Li once led a small team to the Western Qin Kingdom to wipe out the remnants of the Wusheng Demonic Sect. After that, Senior Brother Li and the others disappeared without a trace, and their life-life lamps were also completely extinguished...!"

"Damn the Unborn Demonic Sect, it's those bastards again...!"

Upon hearing this, Gongsun Jian's face hardened with murderous intent, and his fists clenched tightly beneath his sleeves once more. "The blood feud of Junior Brother Lin Yue cannot be left unresolved! I will make these remnants of the Demonic Sect pay a bloody price...!"

"Senior Brother, please calm down."

Seeing that Gongsun Jian was planning to personally take action to avenge the deaths of Li Linyue and the others, Lin Xiaoyu, who had been silent for a long time, stepped forward and said meaningfully, "As the ancients said, a ruler should not raise an army in anger, nor should a general wage war in resentment."

"Although the deaths of Li Linyue and others are truly regrettable, the Four Kingdoms Martial Arts Tournament is approaching, and the sect leader and the elders have been preparing for it for a long time."

"It would be a bad idea to disrupt the sect's grand plan right now in order to investigate the cause of death of Li Linyue and the others, and there is no need to rush it."

Lin Xiaoyu's tone remained calm, as if she felt it was unnecessary to go to great lengths for a mere Li Linyue, and that the "Four Kingdoms Martial Arts Tournament" was the priority at the moment.

"Yes, Senior Brother! You must think this through!"

As soon as the other person finished speaking, Xu Linfeng, who was standing next to him, quickly stood up, then cupped his hands and said, "Actually, that's what I was thinking too. After all, these Wusheng Demonic Sect members have always been as cunning as foxes. If we rashly send out our entire force, we might fall into their trap...!"

Xu Linfeng looked uneasy, seemingly agreeing with Lin Xiaoyu's words and not optimistic about the plan to attack and annihilate the Wusheng Demonic Sect.

"Eh! Okay...!"

Despite being furious, Gongsun Jian did not insist on his own way, despite the advice from Lin Xiaoyu and Xu Linfeng. He could only sigh helplessly and said, "After the Four Kingdoms Martial Arts Tournament is over, we will send some people out to investigate the cause of death of Junior Brother Lin Yue."

"If this was indeed the work of those demonic cultists from the Wusheng Sect, then kill them all without exception, to appease the spirit of Junior Brother Lin Yue in heaven!"

"Xu Linfeng, you heard what your senior brother said, right? If there's nothing else, you may leave."

Lin Xiaoyu glanced at Xu Linfeng beside her again and said calmly.

"Senior Brother is wise! Senior Sister Lin is wise! This humble servant will now take his leave..."

Seeing this, Xu Linfeng understood immediately and turned to leave hastily, a hint of barely perceptible joy flashing in his eyes.

Although the deaths of Li Linyue and others were a loss for the Taiji Sword Sect, they were a great joy for him personally!

Because, as fellow disciples of the same generation, Li Linyue not only always held a superior position over Xu Linfeng during his lifetime, but also maintained the top spot in the inner sect for many years. This made it almost impossible for Xu Linfeng to rise to the top, and he could only remain the second-best for all time!

Now that Li Linyue has passed away, Xu Linfeng has not only ushered in a day of redemption, but he can also become the new first disciple of the Lin generation in the inner sect. How could he not be happy?

As the saying goes, sacrificing a teammate to the heavens grants boundless power; he couldn't wait for Li Linyue to die!

...

Time flies, and half a month later

In the Eastern Xuan Domain, somewhere in the Yuanfeng Realm, above the vast clouds...

Two figures walked one after the other through the air, like shooting stars passing by, looking incredibly dashing.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, is something on your mind?"

Seeing Shen Tianzhong's classic bitter face ahead, Lu Feng, who had been cultivating while traveling, also stopped and stood still, then couldn't help but probe.

It wasn't that he liked gossip, but the other party had been frowning and wearing a bitter face that made him seem unapproachable ever since he left the Shen family's ancestral mausoleum. It was hard not to be curious.

"Brother Lu? Uh, I'm fine...!"

Faced with Lu Feng's probing, Shen Tianzhong was taken aback at first, then shook his head to indicate that he was fine.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, your complexion doesn't look like you're alright at all..."

Seeing that Shen Tianzhong was avoiding the topic and unwilling to speak frankly, Lu Feng grinned again, then said quietly, "Is it because of that brat Shen Yunyou?"

"Heh, but that's to be expected. First, you witness your parents and clansmen being killed, and then the murderer is your own elder brother. Such a tragic human tragedy would be hard for anyone to accept..."

Lu Feng's tone was somewhat playful.

For some reason, he felt like he had seen the classic plot of the elder brother annihilating the clan and the younger brother taking revenge somewhere before, as if a genius boy from the Uchiha clan had done it before.

"Brother Lu, this matter isn't actually what you imagine... Hey!"

At this point, Shen Tianzhong hesitated, then sighed heavily, "So be it! No matter how you explain the massacre of the Shen family back then, it's still inextricably linked to me. No wonder Yunyou hates me so much now and wants to kill me..."

"Perhaps dying in the Shen family ancestral mausoleum, resting in peace with my parents, Uncle Jiu, and Aunt Yu, would be my true final resting place..."

Shen Tianzhong looked dejected and spoke with a melancholy tone, as if he were trapped in some kind of obsession that he could not get rid of.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, what exactly happened back then?"

Seeing this, Lu Feng composed himself and asked seriously, "Why does that brat Shen Yunyou believe you to be the mastermind behind the massacre of the Shen family, and why does he believe it so readily?"

"Furthermore, the Wusheng Sect clearly wiped out the entire Shen family in the past, so why did they leave Shen Yunyou, a fish that escaped their net?"

Lu Feng's words were like pearls, piercing the depths of Shen Tianzhong's heart like a thousand swords.

Because the other party is already trapped by their obsession. If they do not break free from this obsession now, they will only sink deeper and deeper in the future, and may even develop a mental demon. They will be unable to make any further progress on the path of martial arts even if they spend their entire lives doing so!

For Shen Tianzhong, his greatest obsession was none other than his only younger brother, Shen Yunyou!