Chapter 454: The Sun and Moon Illuminate Mountains and Rivers (Thirteen)

Inside the Mountain and River Sect
"Sect Master, Ling Jiuxiao has truly won first place in the Sun and Moon Continent's Young Generation Prodigies Competition!"
Han Xiyue was overjoyed, incredibly excited.
"Utterly useless, just a minor first place in the Sun and Moon Continent."
Su Chen didn't even look up.
Han Xiyue: "......."
That's the first place among the entire continent's young generation, a future with limitless potential.
"Sect Master... our Mountain and River Sect is still the number one sect in the Sun and Moon Continent."
"The Sun and Moon Palace was destroyed by Ling Jiuxiao using the aura of a sword expert."
"But... can our Mountain and River Sect truly hold onto this position of number one power?"
Han Xiyue felt as if she were walking a tightrope in mid-air, thrilled and dangerous; one wrong step and she would be doomed.
Su Chen showed no surprise. He said calmly, "Anyone who dares to object, let Ling Jiuxiao come and pay him a visit."
Han Xiyue looked at Su Chen, who showed no astonishment whatsoever.
"Did he already know?"
Thinking of Su Chen's confident demeanor before the battle, Han Xiyue felt this possibility was quite high.
"However... my Mountain and River Sect is now the number one power on the Sun and Moon Continent, and you, the vice sect master, are still only at the Transcendent Realm. It's truly pathetic."
"It's a disgrace to the sect."
Su Chen sighed.
These words made Han Xiyue whimper and meow wildly.
However, Han Xiyue quickly observed coldly.
Because she was constantly whimpering and meowing, she knew without a doubt that this despicable guy was toying with her!
In just three or four years, she had broken through from the Spirit Pattern Realm to the Transcendent Realm, a feat unimaginable before, and now she was being looked down upon!
However, to be fair, the Mountain and River Sect is now nominally the number one power on the Sun and Moon Continent... with her current cultivation level... it does seem a bit low.
Han Xiyue calmed down and didn't refute.
"To disgrace the sect is to disgrace this sect master."
"To disgrace this sect master is unacceptable!"
Su Chen flicked his sleeve, and a delicate, small token floated in front of Han Xiyue.
He decided to give Han Xiyue a boost.
"So, what is this?"
Han Xiyue asked curiously.
Su Chen said, "This is the key to the fourth floor of the library. How much you can comprehend depends on your own fortune."
Han Xiyue was even more curious: "But isn't the library only three floors?"
Su Chen waved his hand: "You'll know when you go to the library. Sometimes, knowing too much is the death of the cat."
Han Xiyue opened her eyes again and found herself outside the back mountain.
She felt that the young man's words seemed to have a hidden meaning.
At this moment, Su Chen said calmly to someone behind a tree, "Kid, stop hiding."
Ling Jiuxiao emerged from behind the tree: "Sect Master, I have fulfilled my mission! After three hundred rounds of fierce fighting, I am covered in wounds, but I have finally completed the task assigned by you!"
Su Chen: "........"
"You brat, why didn't you come in through the main gate? Why did you choose to sneak in?"
Seeing that the Sect Master didn't seem to mind, Ling Jiuxiao scratched his head and said, "Reporting to the Sect Master, I'm used to taking other routes."
Su Chen didn't dwell on the matter too much. He simply smiled, and a seven-colored glow appeared in his palm.
"This is the Seven-Leaf Divine Tree you needed. You've completed your task, and I, the sect master, will naturally keep my promise."
A divine object, an object that would attract countless supreme beings to fight over in this world, was actually given away so easily.
Ling Jiuxiao, however, did not reach out to take it.
This caused the elder in Ling Jiuxiao's mind to race: "Boy, quickly get the Seven-Leaf Divine Tree!"
Ling Jiuxiao said, "Elder, I'm sorry."
Elder: "?"
Ling Jiuxiao said, "I was born a member of the sect, and I will die a ghost of the sect. My loyalty to the sect is unwavering."
Elder: "What are you trying to do, boy?"
Ling Jiuxiao said, "Sect Master...actually, this disciple's request for the Seven-Leaf Divine Tree is not for myself, but for an elder who has shown me great kindness."
Su Chen nodded slightly, chuckling at Ling Jiuxiao's words: "You're quite clever, boy."
"The one in your mind, I've known of his existence for a long time."
The elder in Ling Jiuxiao's mind suddenly felt his heart pounding...it was a sudden, suffocating feeling, even though he didn't even have a body now.
"He...he knew about my existence all along?"
Su Chen's lips curled slightly upwards as he spoke calmly, "However, as a loyal disciple of the sect, as long as you don't harm the sect's interests, I, the sect master, will not interfere with the opportunities of sect disciples. Being able to receive guidance from a senior is your good fortune."
"As for anyone who tries to take advantage of you, don't worry, I, the sect master, will handle it personally."
Ling Jiuxiao breathed a sigh of relief, and at the same time, a certain thought became even more certain in his mind.
........
Leaving the back mountain
Only then did the elder's voice echo in Ling Jiuxiao's mind: "You brat...were you trying to kill me just now?"
"I've treated you well these past few days, repeatedly saving you from dire straits."
Just a moment ago, the elder felt as if his last vestige of soul was about to shatter from fright.
This brat actually betrayed him!
Ling Jiuxiao said awkwardly, "Elder, I'm doing this for your own good."
The elder retorted irritably, "I'd like to hear how you're doing this for my own good!"
Ling Jiuxiao said, "Elder, I suspect that the Sect Master is the sword expert who intervened in the Myriad Demon Realm."
"Your whereabouts are no secret to the Sect Master. If I don't take this opportunity to confess, I'm afraid he'll misunderstand."
The elder chuckled, "I don't know if what you said before was true or false, but your last sentence is definitely true."
Wanting to switch allegiances and curry favor—that was absolutely true!
How could he not know what this young man was thinking?
Ling Jiuxiao gave an awkward smile: "In short, the Sect Master meant you no harm, Elder. He even gave you the Seven-Leaf Divine Tree."
The Elder snorted: "Perhaps he was trying to curry favor with me, wanting to forge a good relationship."
"Fine, fine, I'll accept his kindness."
Ling Jiuxiao: "......."
.......
Inside the back mountain of the sect
Su Chen stared in the direction Ling Jiuxiao had left.
That's right, he had deliberately been careless just now.
He was determined to give the old man in Ling Jiuxiao's mind a scare.
Now it seemed
"It wasn't enough of a warning."
"I need to find an opportunity to give him another warning."
However, the immediate priority wasn't thinking about the old man in Ling Jiuxiao's mind.
The Mountain and River Sect was now the number one sect on the Sun and Moon Continent.
Such strength was far too pathetic; he, Su Chen, couldn't bear the shame.
Su Chen raised his hand.
The old monsters of the Sun and Moon Continent all looked up, their faces filled with horror, towards the direction of the Mountain and River Sect.
"The entire continent's spiritual energy... is converging there!"