Chapter 393: Recorders of Past and Present (Part 4)

Several more months passed.
The Tianyuan Sect had good news.
Sun Ao had successfully become one of the top ten geniuses of the Mujing Dynasty.
And ranked third!
The entire Tianyuan Sect was overjoyed.
The Tianyuan Sect finally had a successor after its sect leader!
As long as a genius like Sun Ao lived, the Tianyuan Sect's lineage would not be broken; in fact, it might even accumulate strength and advance further.
All of this was related to Su Chen, but not significantly.
Su Chen munched on the roast chicken in his hand. On such a joyous day, the only thing that mattered to him was being able to have an extra meal.
"Hmm?"
Su Chen looked towards the door. A young figure stepped in.
Wearing a green robe embroidered with exquisite landscape paintings.
This was an inner disciple of the Tianyuan Sect.
Although young, he was already at the peak of the Gathering Spirit Realm; it wouldn't be long before he broke through to the Spirit Pattern Realm.
"Grandpa Wuming... my brother is dead..."
The visitor was a handsome young man. Speaking of his brother, he lost control of his emotions, tears streaming down his face.
The handsome young man was named Hengchuan.
His brother was named Hengyue.
Both brothers were exceptionally talented and entered the Tianyuan Sect, becoming inner disciples.
However, Hengyue's talent was even more outstanding, and he was taken in as a true disciple by an elder.
Hengyue naturally participated in the Mujing Dynasty's once-a-decade martial arts competition for the younger generation.
But sadly... Hengyue never returned.
Perhaps he encountered a powerful demonic beast, or perhaps he was killed and robbed by other sects within a secret realm.
No one knows what truly happened.
In short, he did not return.
The Tianyuan Sect produced a genius who ranked third on the Mujing Dynasty's Prodigy Ranking, and the entire sect was immersed in joy.
Heng Yue's death couldn't outweigh the joy of shared glory and shame. His name was gradually selectively forgotten. Only Heng Yue's younger brother, Heng Chuan, felt no joy; he was immersed in grief.
Behind the sect's glory, Heng Chuan lost his closest relative, his blood-related brother!
For the sect, Heng Yue was perhaps just one of the very few 'prices' paid for its glory.
Compared to the gains and honor, this price was negligible.
Heng Yue, a true disciple of the Tianyuan Sect, possessed exceptional talent. He participated in the Mu Jing Dynasty's Genius Battle, bringing glory to his sect, but tragically died in battle.
Su Chen looked at the heartbroken young man before him and carefully stored away Heng Yue's records.
The young man, Heng Chuan, did not leave immediately.
He was still immersed in grief.
It wasn't until dusk that the young man departed.
Not long after the young man left, Su Chen stopped organizing the records.
Someone else arrived silently.
This made Su Chen mutter to himself, "Two people coming in one day, that's rare."
However, Su Chen acted as if nothing was amiss until the newcomer spoke, at which point he turned his head.
"Are you the recorder here? I'd like you to record someone for me."
Su Chen turned back to see a familiar young man.
It was none other than Sun Ao, the genius of the Tianyuan Sect whom he had glimpsed before.
Su Chen calmly asked, "Who do you want to record?"
The young man replied, "Heng Yue, a true disciple."
Su Chen said, "His younger brother came by, but just left."
The young man understood; someone had arrived before him.
"Where is his record?"
Su Chen took out a brand-new record from behind him and handed it to the young man.
The young man took the record and glanced at it, then sighed softly, "Brother Heng, I have successfully become one of the top ten geniuses of the Mu Jing Dynasty, bringing glory to our sect... This joy is truly a pity without you."
He felt a deep regret.
Five people from the Tianyuan Sect went to the Mu Jing Dynasty to participate in the Heavenly Pride Battle.
Four of the five returned, achieving excellent results and living up to the sect's expectations.
Only Heng Yue did not return.
The young man returned the record to Su Chen and then left.
"The dead cannot be brought back, but I will carry Brother Heng's belief with me and reach even greater heights."
The young man's brows radiated pride and confidence.
Young people should be confident and unaware of their own limitations!
The path of martial arts is unstoppable!
Su Chen watched the young man's departing figure.
This sect... is interesting.
.......
After the Heavenly Pride Battle, Tianyuan Sect entered the ranks of the top ten sects of the Mu Jing Dynasty, albeit tenth.
For Tianyuan Sect, this was a huge leap.
Being in the top ten sects was a threshold.
After all, joining a top ten sect meant that when you announced your name, others would immediately recognize you.
"So that's the sect you belong to, one of the top ten sects of the Mu Jing Dynasty."
At such moments, the vanity within would be satisfied.
Your parents back home would also rise in status, respected by relatives and friends, and no one would dare to bully you.
Therefore, Tianyuan Sect planned to expand.
Expansion was a good thing for the sect, allowing it to attract more geniuses, secure more positions, and control more resources.
It was good for both the elders and disciples of Tianyuan Sect.
But for Su Chen, it wasn't a good thing.
The expansion of a sect means more people... and more people often mean more competition.
In martial arts competition, there are more unexpected events, and more unexpected events mean more deaths.
More deaths.
He can no longer live as easily as before, with months passing without a single person alive.
Su Chen rubbed his head.
This was a headache.
He was an old man!
Thinking of this, Su Chen sighed.
He was indeed getting old.
Fortunately, this headache didn't manifest immediately.
Since Tianyuan Sect joined the ranks of the top ten sects of the Mu Jing Dynasty, no one had come here for a year and a half.
This was originally a good thing.
But today, Su Chen's peaceful life was disrupted again by Li Li's arrival.
Su Chen saw the old acquaintance and asked, "What's happened in the sect lately that made you come?"
He saw the worry on Li Li's face.
Li Li smiled bitterly: "Elder Hua led a group of sect disciples on a training expedition, but they disappeared without a trace. By the time the sect discovered them, Elder Hua and all the disciples who went out on the expedition were dead; not a single one survived."
Su Chen raised an eyebrow: "How many died?"
Li Li said with heartache: "Forty-five..."
Including the elder, a total of forty-five people died. No wonder Li Li was so heartbroken; these people were the future pillars of the sect.
They all died in one fell swoop.
"This is a major incident for the sect. The sect has sent me here to have you write this down so that all sect disciples can review it, as a bloody warning!"
Su Chen nodded.
Forty-five people died in one go.
Truly a major undertaking.