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

At this moment, Yue Buqun's words sounded so heartless to Linghu Chong, as if he could feel no warmth at all.

Click~

Master, can you hear that? Chong'er's heart is broken.

Why does it sound so natural for you to punish me by sending me to the Cliff of Repentance?

Master, aren't you also depressed all the time?

Junior brother, why are you laughing?

Linghu Chong's heart was filled with a silent scream, his face blank.

But Yue Buqun had already spoken, and there was no way he could take it back. Linghu Chong would inevitably have to face the wall in confinement after returning.

Linghu Chong steeled his resolve.

Go home then!

Chapter 450: The Position of Alliance Leader (Bonus Chapter 12/26)

"All right."

Yue Buqun didn't elaborate on this. "What about Liang Fa and the others?"

Linghu Chong perked up and quickly said, "My junior brothers are all practicing their skills."

Yue Buqun nodded and said to Jiang Ning, "Since you are safe and sound, you should go and rest now. Go and see your fellow disciples. I also need to see Abbess Qingzhu and Master Mo Da to discuss the matter of announcing our Five Sects Alliance at the succession ceremony next January."

Jiang Ning was not really dead, and Yue Buqun has also rallied.

There's still a month until January 1st, plenty of time. The Wudang, Shaolin, Kunlun, and other sects haven't arrived yet, so they can discuss things beforehand.

"Oh, right."

Yue Buqun then said to Jiang Ning, "You've come at just the right time. Tonight, our five sects will be discussing some matters. All the sect leaders will be there. You should come too. I'll have your master's wife inform you later."

"Yes, Master."

Jiang Ning nodded.

"Junior brother, come with me."

After the blow he just suffered, Linghu Chong recovered, since returning to the Cliff of Contemplation was a common occurrence for him.

Linghu Chong exclaimed with delight, "If Dayou and Junior Brother Lin knew you were still alive, they would be so happy!"

Jiang Ning smiled.

Jiang Ning had been to Jinding Temple before and was quite familiar with the place. After Linghu Chong led him to the area where the Emei Sect had prepared guest rooms for the Huashan Sect, he gathered his inner strength and shouted loudly.

"Junior brothers, Junior Brother Jiang Ning is back!"

As soon as Linghu Chong shouted, dozens of figures rushed over from different places.

Lin Pingzhi was the first to arrive.

"Senior brother..."

Upon seeing Jiang Ning standing not far away, Lin Pingzhi's eyes widened, his face filled with shock, disbelief, and surprise.

"Junior Brother Jiang Ning, you're really back?"

The other Huashan disciples also came out, and upon seeing Jiang Ning, they rushed over with delight, surrounding him and talking amongst themselves.

"Junior brother, what exactly happened to you this time? Why are there rumors of your death circulating in the martial world? Could it really be that the Demonic Sect attacked you?"

"Junior brother, are you injured?"

"Junior brother, what are you holding in your hand? Why is it wrapped in cloth?"

"Junior brother..."

The disciples of Mount Hua were all talking at once, making it impossible to tell who was who. Even Lin Pingzhi's words were drowned out.

"alright!!"

Linghu Chong couldn't help but shout.

The other disciples stopped talking and all looked at Linghu Chong.

"Master said that Junior Brother needs to rest after traveling all the way to Mount Emei. If you have any questions, please wait until he has rested."

Hearing Linghu Chong's words, the disciples, though curious, held back and watched as Linghu Chong led Jiang Ning away.

"Senior brother, it's so good to see you're still alive!"

Lin Pingzhi silently watched Jiang Ning's retreating figure, and couldn't help but clench his fists.

He vowed to practice diligently and catch up with Jiang Ning.

"Junior brother, you should rest well. If any other junior brothers or fellow disciples from other sects come looking for you, I will keep them away from outside."

Linghu Chong led Jiang Ning to a guest room and then said...

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

Jiang Ning smiled.

Linghu Chong waved his hand: "This is nothing. Your return is the greatest joy. Alright, you should rest."

After saying that, Linghu Chong left.

Jiang Ning watched Linghu Chong's departing figure before going inside and closing the door.

Jiang Ning placed the Zhenwu Sword, wrapped in cloth, on the table, then lay down on the bed with his eyes closed.

He didn't sleep; he just closed his eyes to rest.

As night fell, there was a knock on Jiang Ning's door.

"Ning'er, are you still resting?"

It was Ning Zhongze's voice.

Jiang Ning opened his eyes, got up, and opened the door, where he saw Ning Zhongze standing.

"I've rested enough, Master's wife. Did Master call me over?"

Ning Zhongze nodded: "Yes, come with me."

Jiang Ning closed the door and followed Ning Zhongze. Before long, they arrived at a side hall of a golden-roofed temple.

The door to the side hall was open, and Jiang Ning could see that there were quite a few people sitting inside.

Yue Buqun... Feng Buping... Tianmen Daoist... Dingxian Shitai... Dingyi, Dingjing... Master Mo Da... Qingzhu Shitai and other masters from the Emei Sect were all present.

"Master, Senior Uncle Tianmen, Senior Uncle Dingxian, Senior Uncle Mo, Senior Qingzhu."

Jiang Ning bowed to everyone after entering.

“Amitabha, my nephew Jiang, the news of your death has been circulating in the martial arts world. Everyone felt sorry for you. Our righteous path has lost a chivalrous figure who rid the people of evil. Now that we see you return safely, we are so fortunate.”

Master Qingzhu stood up and smiled at Jiang Ning.

They all knew about Jiang Ning's death, but Yue Buqun had told them during the day that Jiang Ning was still alive.

At this moment, not only did Abbess Qingzhu stand up, but Mr. Mo and the others also rose to congratulate Jiang Ning.

They are all Jiang Ning's elders, so there's no need for such formality. However, Jiang Ning is different from the other younger generation; he is the third-best martial artist in the righteous path, possessing extremely high martial arts skills, and thus deserves the respect due to him.

"Alright, Ning'er, you've come at the right time. Now your master is about to discuss important matters with your senior masters. Please sit down and listen in."

Yue Buqun spoke.

No one objected to Yue Buqun's words.

Next, they discussed important matters concerning the future of several factions. Those present were all high-ranking members of their respective factions. Logically, second-generation disciples should not be present, but Jiang Ning was an exception.

Although Jiang Ning is a second-generation descendant, his martial arts skills are second only to Yue Buqun among everyone. In fact, it is now a question mark whether Yue Buqun or Jiang Ning, master and disciple, is stronger.

Jiang Ning is destined to be a powerful figure in the future of the Huashan Sect, and none of the people present had any objections to this.

"Please, everyone, have a seat."

Master Qingzhu then spoke up, and after everyone was seated, she said, "What I want to discuss with everyone tonight is the question of who will be the leader of the alliance after the Five Sects Alliance is announced at the Emei Sect's succession ceremony in January."

After Master Qingzhu said this, everyone fell silent, and no one spoke.

After a while, Mr. Mo glanced at everyone's expressions and spoke first.

"What suggestions does Abbess Qingzhu have in mind?"

Mr. Mo Da's choice of words is very apt.

Since Abbess Qingzhu has said this, it means she has her own ideas, so they should first listen to what Abbess Qingzhu's ideas are.

In fact, from the perspective of the three factions, whether it was him, Tianmen Daoren, or Dingxian Shitai, they all supported Yue Buqun as the leader of the alliance. After all, Yue Buqun's martial arts skills were very high, the Huashan Sect had a century-old friendship with the three factions, he was upright, and had a high reputation in the martial arts world, making him the best candidate to be the leader of the alliance.

But they also had to consider the ideas of the Emei Sect.

Although we don't know exactly how high Qingzhu's martial arts skills are, they are probably a notch weaker than Yue Buqun's.

The leader of the alliance has always been someone with high martial arts skills, but the Emei Sect is very strong overall, ranking first among the five sects, which is something they have to take into consideration.

Otherwise, if they were to elect Yue Buqun as the leader of the alliance, it might make the Emei Sect think that the four sects were excluding her Emei Sect as a whole.

"Why don't I, Yue, first share my thoughts?"

Yue Buqun spoke at this moment.

Master Qingzhu originally wanted to say something, but she also said, "Sect Leader Yue, please speak."

Yue Buqun looked at everyone and said, "As you all know, this is a major event for our Five Factions Alliance. The position of Alliance Leader is of paramount importance and must be carefully considered."

Yue Buqun's words were mature and prudent, but they were all old clichés and contained little substance.

However, everyone nodded in agreement, because what Yue Buqun was about to say was the real deal.

"This is what I think: Abbess Qingzhu is highly skilled in martial arts, and the Emei Sect is a major sect in the martial arts world. Its reputation and strength are beyond question. Therefore, I recommend Abbess Qingzhu to serve as the leader of the alliance."

No one expected Yue Buqun to say that, but Abbess Dingxian was the first to react.

"Amitabha."