The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

"Actually, I also think that the Left Alliance Leader's plan to merge the factions is inappropriate, but this is an internal matter of the Five Mountains Sword Sects, and it is not appropriate for Shaolin to interfere."

At this moment, Fang Zheng also spoke up, expressing Shaolin's difficulties and their inability to help.

"Alliance Leader Zuo doesn't necessarily want to force the merger. He just said it was just a discussion. Since everyone disagrees, I'm sure Alliance Leader Zuo won't bring it up again. Abbess, Brother Dao, please put your mind at ease."

Instead of provoking further conflict with the Songshan Sect in front of outsiders like Fang Zheng and Chongxu, Yue Buqun tried to calm everyone down.

"Alright, Alliance Leader Zuo has already descended the mountain. Everyone, please come back with me. I, Yue, would like to express my sincere gratitude for your help this time."

Yue Buqun chuckled and let the matter drop. He led the group toward the main hall, but then turned back to look at the direction Zuo Lengchan and the others had left, and then at Tianmen Daoist, and couldn’t help but shake his head.

Although Tianmen Daoist successfully persuaded Zuo Lengchan to agree to initiate the election for the next leader of the Five Mountains Alliance, he also offended the entire Songshan Sect.

When Daoist Tianmen said those words, not only were Zuo Lengchan's junior brothers, such as Ding Mian and Lu Bai, angry, but the disciples of the Songshan Sect also glared angrily at Daoist Tianmen. If they weren't of lower seniority, several Songshan disciples probably would have spoken up.

Moreover, Yu Panzi and the others have all sided with the Songshan Sect. Now that Tianmen Daoist has arrived, even if Zuo Lengchan doesn't target Tianmen Daoist later, the conflict between Yu Panzi and the others and Tianmen Daoist will likely escalate after they return to the Taishan Sect.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the Tianmen Taoists are currently facing both internal and external troubles.

Yue Buqun planned to remind Tianmen Daoist at some later time.

Jiang Ning had also considered this issue. Given the current trend, if Tianmen Daoist still couldn't bring himself to be ruthless, it might be detrimental to him.

Jiang Ning subconsciously looked towards Yue Buqun and found that Yue Buqun was also looking at him. Both of their gazes were on Tianmen Daoist at the same time, and then they looked away.

Both of them sighed almost imperceptibly.

……

"How dare Tianmen do this!"

On the way down the mountain, Lu Bai couldn't help but utter another angry rebuke.

Not only him, but Fei Bin, Ding Mian and others also looked very grim, and the Songshan disciples behind them were also discussing among themselves.

Now they also know what happened at the previous meeting.

"Isn't this a good thing? Why would they disagree?"

"It's one thing to disagree, but to kick us out of the mountain is another. We've come all this way to help them, and they don't even give us a cup of tea before kicking us out. Are they still allies?!"

"But we came down the mountain on our own."

"What's the difference between this situation and forcing us to come down the mountain?"

Two disciples from Mount Song kept complaining on their way down the mountain. One was Shi Da, who was known as the Thousand-Foot Pine, and the other was a disciple from Mount Song named Di Xiu.

"They even say we're annexing them. What's the point of annexing them? My Songshan Sect is currently the most powerful of the Five Mountains. There's no need for such a thing. The purpose of merging sects is to make the Five Mountains Sword Sects even more powerful in the martial world. Not only do they not understand, but they also disrespect their sect leader and senior uncle. They deserve to die!"

Di Xiu said bitterly.

His words were heard in more than one place among the disciples of Songshan, all complaining about this matter.

Hearing the discussions among the disciples behind him, Lu Bai couldn't hold back any longer. He took two steps to stand in front of Zuo Lengchan, his face grim, and said, "Senior brother, are we just going to let this go like this?"

At this moment, Zuo Lengchan's expression remained calm, as if he had not heard these discussions and was not affected by what had happened before.

After hearing Lu Bai's question, Zuo Lengchan glanced at him and spoke calmly.

"What good will it do to just not count it?"

"I can't swallow this!"

Lu Bai suppressed his anger and said.

"Only those who are magnanimous can achieve great things."

Zuo Lengchan glanced at Lu Baidingmian and the others, and said, "You are all in high positions and should be more shrewd, yet you can't even tolerate a few harsh words. What can you accomplish by shouting and yelling like this?"

Zuo Lengchan remained remarkably calm and even had the composure to educate his fellow disciples.

"You must remember that temporary gains and losses are nothing; a true man is one who can bend and stretch."

"Only by enduring what ordinary people cannot endure can one do what ordinary people cannot do."

Chapter 250: Zuo Lengchan's Way of Dealing with the World

"Yes, senior brother."

Ding Mian, Lu Bai, and others immediately bowed and agreed.

They had great faith in Zuo Lengchan.

After agreeing with Zuo Lengchan, Lu Bai couldn't help but say with some concern, "However, Senior Brother, the other four sects reacted so strongly after we proposed merging the sects today. Dingyi even proposed to withdraw from the Five Mountains Alliance. I'm afraid this merging plan will be difficult..."

Zuo Lengchan glanced calmly at his fellow disciples, his gaze finally settling on Fei Bin, and said, "Do you know why things turned out this way today?"

Fei Bin lowered his head and dared not speak under Zuo Lengchan's gaze.

Although things turned out this way, Fei Bin knew it was all his fault.

Lu Bai, Ding Mian, and the others exchanged glances, then bowed and said in unison, "Please enlighten us, Senior Brother."

Zuo Lengchan turned his head to look ahead, without keeping him in suspense.

"Because you lack power."

"Power?"

Lu Bai and the others exchanged puzzled glances. Han Tianpeng cautiously asked, "Senior brother, what does this 'power' refer to? Does it refer to the power of our Songshan Sect?"

In his understanding, the Songshan Sect's power is now stronger than the four sects combined; this is power.

Zuo Lengchan shook his head slightly.

"The way to conduct oneself in the world lies in the art of adapting to change; one should not be biased towards one side."

"Our Songshan Sect is indeed stronger than the other four sects now. This is a real advantage. However, it is impossible to suppress them and merge the sects based on this alone. Therefore, we need to rely on another kind of advantage, a feint. Only by combining the real and the feint can we be invincible."

"A feint?"

Ding Mian, Lu Bai, and others were puzzled.

Zuo Lengchan seemed to be in a better mood, and his tone carried a hint of a smile.

"What is illusory power? It is ethereal and intangible, yet it is so real that one cannot help but acknowledge its existence."

"The previous siege of Mount Hua by the demonic sect's witch's subordinates was a feint. I originally intended to use this feint and then combine it with real forces to force the other four sects to agree to merge. Only when they know that such things will happen again in the future and that only merging sects can solve the problem will they agree. Otherwise, merging sects will never succeed."

At this point, Zuo Lengchan glanced at Fei Bin again and said, "We're too late this time. Those people have already been dealt with by the four sects and Qingcheng and Emei. Their illusory power is gone. You shouldn't have proposed merging the sects now. Not only will it not succeed, but it will also have the opposite effect. Without the combination of illusory power, relying solely on real power will only provoke a strong backlash from them. Besides, Emei had already allied with Huashan by then, and Shaolin, Wudang, and Kunlun wouldn't just stand by and watch us succeed in merging the sects. Their real power is no weaker than ours. Proposing merging the sects now will only make them wary, and it will be of no use at all."

After Zuo Lengchan finished speaking at length, Fei Bin's head was lowered as low as it could go, his face flushed red with embarrassment and guilt.

"Senior brother, I'm sorry."

Zuo Lengchan shook his head slightly, not blaming him: "I'm not saying this to blame you, but to let you know that you should remember this lesson and not make the same mistake again. You are my junior brothers, and the Songshan Sect still needs you to continue to develop."

Upon hearing Zuo Lengchan's words, Ding Mian, Lu Bai, and others, who were already in their fifties or sixties, couldn't help but tear up. Fei Bin, in particular, felt as if his heart was being torn apart.

This time, not only did Zuo Lengchan's plan fail, but it also put Zuo Lengchan in danger of losing his position as leader of the Five Mountains Alliance. He wished he could commit suicide to atone for his sins. From now on, he would only risk his life to serve Zuo Lengchan and do his utmost until his death. Even if Zuo Lengchan wanted him to die immediately, he would not hesitate.

"All right."

Zuo Lengchan glanced at his fellow disciples.

"This trip wasn't a complete waste. Consider it a tour for the Songshan Sect. The past cannot be undone, but the future can still be changed. Let's focus on the future."

Ding Mian, Lu Bai, and the others exchanged glances and bowed, saying, "Yes, Senior Brother."

Yu Panzi and Yu Jizi were also in the Songshan Sect's group, and they all heard Zuo Lengchan's words.

At this moment, they were indeed captivated by Zuo Lengchan's charm.

……

"Huh, what about people?"

Feng Qingyang, who had just returned to the foot of Mount Hua, stared blankly at the empty space for a moment.

There were hundreds of people when he came down the mountain, but now there's not a single one left.

Is Shaolin's efficiency really that fast?

At this moment, Feng Qingyang could only think that this was the reason why Shaolin had taken action.

The crisis had been resolved, and a smile appeared on Feng Qingyang's face.

At this moment, his complexion returned to its original rosy hue, as if his pale face at the Xi'an Inn had been an illusion.

Now that the matter was over, Feng Qingyang prepared to return to his Repentance Cliff and continue his reclusive life.

Just as Feng Qingyang was about to go up the mountain, he suddenly saw a large group of people coming down from under the Thousand-Foot Cliff. Feng Qingyang looked at their clothes and found that they were people from the Songshan Sect and the Taishan Sect.

It seems they came to help the Huashan Sect, and now they've finished and are preparing to leave.

Feng Qingyang thought to himself.

He was not surprised by the help from the Songshan Sect. Although he had learned about the Songshan Sect's ambitions from Fang Zheng, he did not believe that the Songshan Sect would stand by and watch the Huashan Sect perish.

Upon seeing this large group of people coming down from the mountain, Feng Qingyang neither showed himself nor had any intention of going up to chat with them.

Since there were people on the front mountain, he decided to go up from the back mountain.

……

"When you met Senior Feng this time, did you notice anything unusual about him?"

night.

In one of the guest rooms on Mount Hua, Fang Zheng was talking to Fang Sheng.

Fang Sheng shook his head: "No, Senior Feng is still healthy and vigorous, and looks to be in better physical condition than us."

Fang Zheng frowned upon hearing this.

Feng Qingyang is now over eighty years old. Most ordinary people would already be buried by now, but Feng Qingyang is still alive and kicking. It seems he can live for at least another twenty years.

Wow, they're really good at surviving.

Fang Zheng couldn't help but think to himself.

"Senior brother."

Fang Sheng looked somewhat troubled: "Senior Feng asked Shaolin to resolve the current crisis of the Huashan Sect. Although he didn't say it, he probably intended to use the favor I owe him. But given the current situation, I'm afraid I can't repay the favor I owe Senior Feng."