My disciples are all villains.

Nie Qingyun descended swiftly. As soon as he descended, he staggered backward.

Meanwhile, the golden dragon formed by the saber Formation dove. The energy sabers at the dragon's head were the sharpest and glowed with a faint blue light. At a casual glance, it looked as though the dragon was spewing fire.

When Nie Qingyun was about to raise his arms to block the attack, he discovered his arms were so sore and numb that he could barely lift them. His heart sank immediately. He could only look on as the golden dragon dove toward him.

Splash!

The golden dragon dispersed into water droplets that rained down on the ground when it was just half a foot away from Nie Qingyun.

With this, Lu Zhou's demonstration ended.

At this moment, the entire place was as silent as a graveyard.

The disciples around the cloud platform looked at the stunned Nie Qingyun in shock. Even if they had thought that Lu Zhou killing Ye Zhen and Chen Tiandu was only due to a stroke of luck, they could not deny that Lu Zhou defeating Nie Qingyun had nothing to do with luck at all.

The water gathered on the cloud platform flowed along the cracks of the stone floor, forming a winding river. At this moment, everyone no longer thought of it was as just water. This water could clearly kill people!

The Thousand Willow's Monastery Master, Xia Changqiu, was a pure Daoist cultivator, and the philosophies of the Daoist sect were steeped in his bones. He had once said that the highest form of moral conduct was to be like water, benefiting all living things without struggling against them. When he looked at the water dragon, he felt as though he had been enlightened.

Among everyone present on the scene, Sikong Beichen was the calmest. After all, he was already used to seeing Lu Zhou easily defeating Ten-leaf elites.

Meanwhile, the others were still shocked by the Water Dragon Song.

A saber could be all creations while all creations could be sabers.

"Thank you for showing mercy, Senior Lu!" The Cloud Mountain elders expressed their gratitude as they kowtowed. If something were to happen to Nie Qingyun, Cloud Mountain would be done for.

Yu Zhenghai who had been standing behind his master had paid attention to every move of the Water Dragon Song. Although he was an elite in saber techniques, and he had spent his early years under his master's strict guidance, he was still surprised by his master's demonstration.

Yu Zhenghai seemed to have gained a deep understanding of the Water Dragon song as he stood still in a daze. The scene of his master unleashing the energy sabers kept replaying in his mind. It was indescribably brilliant. He could not help but wonder if he were able to unleash it so perfectly if he tried.

"Do you understand it now?" Lu Zhou raised his right hand slightly, and the Jasper Saber returned to his palm.

After Yu Zhenghai returned to his senses, he quickly bowed and replied, "I understand now. However, I have a question."

"What is it?"

"I understand condensing water into energy sabers, but I don't quite understand dealing an additional blow at the end." Yu Zhenghai could not understand why his master whose cultivation base was so profound that even a Ten-leaf cultivator like Chen Tiandu was defeated with a single strike needed an additional blow to defeat Nie Qingyun.

Lu Zhou passed the Jasper Saber to Yu Zhenghai before he said, "To nip it in the bud." After that, he added, "Ponder on that on your own."

Upon hearing these words, Yu Zhenghai no longer dared to ask any more questions. He hastily bowed. "Understood. I'll remember your words, master. I'll master the Water Dragon Song as quickly as possible."

Lu Zhou stood with his hands on his back as he descended the stairs. Then, he looked at Nie Qingyun and asked, "Nie Qingyun, do you understand why I did that?"

Something stirred in Nie Qingyun. He recalled the incident with the Sky Martial Court and wondered inwardly, 'Is Senior Lu trying to warn me?'

Nie Qingyun quickly bowed and said, "I understand." He recalled Lu Zhou's Thunderblast that day. There was no way to stop that technique. When dealing with a person like Lu Zhou, it was best that Cloud Mountain stopped being on the fence and made their stance clear.

Lu Zhou nodded, pleased. With a wave of his arm, he left.

After Lu Zhou left, the pressure on the others immediately lessened.

Sikong Beichen who remained calm from the beginning to the end flew over to Nie Qingyun. He asked with a hint of smugness, "Nie Qingyun, do you believe that Brother Lu has initiated his Birth Chart now?"

"I do."

"Have you ever thought about how many Ten-leaf cultivators have been born over the past 2,000 years? Naturally, it's almost unthinkable for someone to have initiated their Birth Chart among these limited numbers. On the other hand, it's not so surprising for someone to have achieved that since there was no lack of people attempting it since 2,000 years ago. Perhaps, when the cultivation of humans reaches the state where we can look down on the world, 10,000 years would have passed..." Sikong Beichen had spent a lot of time thinking recently, and he had understood many things.

"Perhaps, you're right," Nie Qingyun said.

"Cloud Mountain and the Ninth Temple have been fighting for so many years, and our conflicts have never been settled. Over the past millennium, none of us has gotten the upper hand over the other. If you're willing, what do you say to sitting down and having a good chat today?" Sikong Beichen asked.

Nie Qingyun did not respond right away. Instead, he turned around and scanned the Cloud Mountain disciples and the kneeling elders. After what happened with Ye Zhen, Cloud Mountain has been affected. They did not have much energy to fight against the Ninth Temple anymore. "Alright."

When the duo was about to leave, Yu Zhenghai suddenly called out, "Sect Master Nie…"

Nie Qingyun turned around and asked, "What's the matter, Comrade Yu?" Nie Qingyun turned and said.

"Are you up for a sparring session?" Yu Zhenghai asked with a straight face.

Nie Qingyun frowned. He immediately grabbed Sikong Beichen's wrist and said, "Old Fiend Sikong, don't even think of sleeping before we talk things through! Comrade Yu, I have some matters to attend to today. I'm sorry, but we'll have to spar another day."

Sikong Beichen. "…"

The Cloud Mountain disciples. "…"

…

Inside the Sacred Rites Hall in the Sky Martial Court.

Mo Buyan recounted his experience on Cloud Mountain to the court master, Yu Chenshu.

The other elders were visibly angered after listening to Mo Buyan's report.

Someone said, "Court Master, we can't let this slide! These foreign tribesmen are too much. How dare they wreak havoc in the red lotus domain? What do they take us for?"

"Some situations require extraordinary measures. I agree with drenching Cloud Mountain in blood. We should teach them a lesson. If we allow them to act so unrestrained, how are we and the royal court supposed to maintain our reputation?"

The court master, Yu Zhengshu, remained silent.

An elder, Jiang Tingzhong, coughed before he said, "Calm down."

The others quietened down.

Jian Tingzhong continued to say, "I understand your anger, my fellow elders. We've sent many of our men to the golden lotus domain, and they've all been killed. Now, the people of the golden lotus domain are wreaking havoc on our territories. It's clear that they shouldn't be taken lightly. Someone witnessed Chen Tiandu being killed by the old man with the surname Lu with just one palm strike. It's possible that someone capable of such a feat has initiated his Birth Chart. How are we supposed to go against someone who has initiated his Birth Chart?"

Jian Tingzhong's were like a cold bucket of water being splashed on the other elders.

The Sacred Rites Hall was silent for a long time.

"It's not easy to initiate one's Birth Chart. Indeed, Chen Tiandu was killed with a single palm strike, but that's because he fought with all his might against Sikong Beichen before that. He was already injured to begin with. Isn't it expected for a good-for-nothing Nine-leaf cultivator such as Ye Zhen to be manipulated by someone else?"

Jian Tingzhong frowned. "What do you know? Ye Zhen had six lives. His avatar is the Nine Infants, and there was no need for him to fear a Ten-leaf cultivator when he was in his dojo. He knew many kinds of Formations, and he knew all the platforms on Cloud Mountain like the back of his hand. Even the court master himself can't easily kill Ye Zhen."

"Enough," Yu Chenshu finally said.

The Sacred Rites Hall fell silent again.

Then, Yu Chenshu continued to say, "All of you have a point, but we can't act recklessly. Since they kept some of our men alive, it means they're wary of us as well. We'll discuss the matter of the Birth Chart later."

"What should we do now?"

"I know what I'm doing. Without my order, nobody is allowed to provoke them," Yu Chenshu said, "That will be all."

"Understood."

After the elders left the Sacred Rites Hall, Yu Chenshu slowly rose to his feet. He addressed his trusted disciple by his side. "Is she awake?"

"Yes. She woke up yesterday."

"Keep this a secret. I'm going to see her."

"Understood."

The disciple left the Sacred Rites Hall with Yu Chenshu. They passed through the door, a half-foot pond, and arrived at the lowermost layer of Sky Martial Court.

The disciple held a lamp and pressed on the wall beside a stone door. Soon after, the stone door slowly slid open.

They descended the steps for a long time before their surroundings finally widened. It was pitch-black.

The moment Yu Chenshu appeared, many figures rose to their feet in the darkness. Alas, they were restrained by ice-cold iron chains. All of them were held in prison rooms that were filled with Formation veins.

A burst of hoarse laughter rang in the dark. "A familiar stench... stench… stench… Lord… Court Master…"

Clang!

The sounds of rattling chains filled the room.

The disciple with the lamp shook in fright.

"Court Master… Court Master… Oh, how I missed you."

Yu Chenshu's face remained expressionless as he ignored the noise. He continued making his way to the deepest part of the room and arrived in front of another stone door. "Open it."

"Understood."

The stone door slid open slowly.

Unlike the pitch-black prison rooms behind them, it was quiet, and a faint beam of light shone down from above. The space was not very big, but it was clean and neat.

The structure of the stone room was unique, and the veins on the walls were complicated and varied. There was a bed in the room.

At this moment, a person could be seen lying on the bed. It was a woman with wrinkles all over her face. Her hair was white, her eyes were listless, and her lips were dry and cracked.

Yu Chengshu walked with his hands on his back toward the bed. After a moment's silence, he waved his arm.

The disciple behind him bowed and retreated out of the stone room before closing the door.

After what seemed like hours, Yu Chenshu sighed and said, "Luo Xuan, you're finally awake."